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Gregg v. Georgia - Significance, Death Penalty Upheld Under Certain Circumstances, Caryl Chessman Trial, Further Readings

court petitioner respondent decision

Petitioner

Troy Leon Gregg

Respondent

State of Georgia

Petitioner's Claim

That the death penalty, even when imposed under the safeguards applied in the state of Georgia, violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

Chief Lawyer for Petitioner

G. Hughel Harrison

Chief Lawyer for Respondent

G. Thomas Davis

Justices for the Court

Harry A. Blackmun, Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr., William H. Rehnquist, John Paul Stevens, Potter Stewart (writing for the Court), Byron R. White

Justices Dissenting

William J. Brennan, Jr., Thurgood Marshall

Place

Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision

2 July 1976

Decision

The Supreme Court upheld the death penalty as imposed by Georgia.

Related Cases

  • Proffitt v. Florida, 428 U.S. 242 (1976).
  • Jurek v. Texas, 428 U.S. 262 (1976).
  • Woodson v. North Carolina, 428 U.S. 280 (1976).
  • Roberts v. Louisiana, 431 U.S. 633 (1976).

Sources

Knappman, Edward W., ed. Great American Trials. Detroit, MI: Visible Ink Press, 1994.

Additional Topics

Gregg v. Georgia - Further Readings

Gregg v. Georgia - Significance

In 1972, in Furman v. Georgia, the Supreme Court had declared that the death penalty was unconstitutional. Over the next few years, a change in justices, as well as the imposition of certain procedures to prevent arbitrariness and prejudice in state trials of capital crimes, resulted in a changed attitude towards capital punishment. Troy Gregg was charged with two counts each of armed robbery and …

Gregg v. Georgia - Death Penalty Upheld Under Certain Circumstances

The justices were unable to agree on a single opinion, but Justices Stewart, Powell, and Stevens spoke for the seven-member majority. The Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment was not a static concept, they declared. Instead, it was subject to the public's evolving standards of decency. At the time the Constitution and Bill of Rights were drafted, capital punishment was…

Gregg v. Georgia - Caryl Chessman Trial

After eight stays of execution, the convicted "Red Light Bandit," Caryl Chessman, was put to death 2 May 1960, just seconds before a ninth stay of execution was telephoned. The case was significant due to the generation of worldwide attention and sympathy for Chessman's documented struggle against capital punishment and the U.S. death penalty process. The main point of argument for a new trial had…

Harris v. McRae - Significance, The Hyde Amendment, Back At The District Court, Returning To The Supreme Court [next] [back] Greer v. Spock - Significance, A Military Mission, A Long Court Battle, Discrimination Or Not?, A Dissenting View

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about 1 year ago

heather church

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almost 4 years ago

This article was very helpful in writing my CRJ 112 Term paper. thanks for the information.

And before you ask, yes all information used was properly cited.

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