The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declared
Florida's death penalty law unconstitutional because it requires the
trial judge and not the jury to make the critical findings necessary to
impose capital punishment.
The state's current system is at odds with a
string of Supreme Court cases which held that facts that add to a
defendant's punishment — known as aggravating circumstances — must be
found by a jury.
"The Sixth Amendment requires a jury, not a
judge, to find each fact necessary to impose a sentence of death. A
jury's mere recommendation is not enough," wrote Sonia Sotomayor for the
court's 8-1 majority.
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Source: NBC News
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