Capital Punishment and Legal Ethics Quiz

Presumption of innocence is the legal principle that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty.

Indeterminate sentence is the term for a sentence that allows for the possibility of parole after a specified period of time.

The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the right to a trial by jury in criminal cases.

Canada was the first country to completely abolish the death penalty for all crimes.

Habeas corpus is the legal process used to challenge the constitutionality of the death penalty.

Double jeopardy is the legal principle that prohibits the government from punishing an individual more than once for the same offense.

Jury selection is the term used to describe the legal process of selecting jurors for a trial.

The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the use of cruel and unusual punishment, including the death penalty.

Direct review is the process of reviewing a death penalty case to ensure that all legal procedures were followed and that the sentence is appropriate.

Michigan was the first U.S. state to officially abolish the death penalty.

Insanity plea is the legal defense that argues the defendant was not mentally capable of understanding the consequences of their actions at the time of the crime.

Stoning is NOT commonly used in modern times as a method of execution.

Rehabilitation is NOT a reason commonly cited by proponents of capital punishment.

Parole is the legal process by which a convicted person is released from prison before completing their full sentence.

Necessity is the term for a legal defense that argues the defendant committed the crime but should not be held criminally liable due to extraordinary circumstances.

Proportionality refers to the principle that the punishment must fit the crime in capital punishment cases.

Gregg v. Georgia is the Supreme Court case that upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty in the United States.

The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 2005, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty.

Babylon was the first country to formally introduce capital punishment as a statutory penalty.

Substantive due process is the legal doctrine that holds that certain rights are so fundamental that the government may not infringe upon them.

The last execution for witchcraft recorded was in England, occurring as recently as 1872.

China is known for having the highest number of executions annually.

In the landmark case Atkins v. Virginia, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that executing individuals with intellectual disabilities violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

Costa Rica was the first country to abolish the death penalty for all crimes.

The United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1945, which explicitly mentions the right to life without mention of the death penalty.