Primary Case Facts

Question 1

Trop v. Dulles

Answer 1

1. Albert Trop deserted from the Army in 1944, escaping from a disciplinary stockade.
2. Dishonorably discharged and sentenced to 3 years of hard labor.
3. Applied for passport in 1955; denied because Section 401(g) of the 1940 Nationality Act made him an expatriate.
4. Sued based on the 8th Amendment.

Question 2

Hutto v. Finney

Answer 2

1. Petitioners were attacking the Arkansas prison system for its inhumane conditions.
2. Specifically, they called out the system for its indefinite limits on solitary confinement and overcrowding.
3. “An average of 4, and sometimes as many as 10 or 11, prisoners were crowded into windowless 8’ x 10’ cells containing no furniture other than a source of water and a toilet that could only be flushed from outside the cell.”

Question 3

Rhodes v. Chapman

Answer 3

1. Chapman was a prisoner with a man named Richard Jaworski – they were double-celled by an Ohio prison in Lucasville.
2. They sued based on conditions of confinement, saying that it was cruel and unusual.
3. District Court agreed, but SCOTUS struck down.

Question 4

Harmelin v. Michigan

Answer 4

1. Harmelin was convicted of owning over 650 grams of cocaine, and was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.
2. He sued under the 8th Amendment.
3. SCOTUS upheld the sentence, saying that the effect of 672 grams of cocaine – the number of doses – was enough to justify the sentence.

Question 5

Hudson v. McMillian

Answer 5

1. Hudson, an LA prisoner, had a beating by prison guards, including McMillian, and sued under the 8th Amendment. He suffered bruises and loosened teeth.
2. The Court of Appeals ruled that those injuries were minor and therefore not a violation.
3. The SCOTUS reversed, saying that the use of excessive physical force against a prisoner may constitute cruel and unusual punishment even though the inmate does not suffer serious injury.

Question 6

Helling v. McKinney

Answer 6

1. McKinney was a prisoner in Nevada who was exposed to ETS (environmental tobacco smoke) from other prisoners in the system.
2. He sued, claiming cruel and unusual punishment.
3. He won in the district court, and the state sued to the Supreme Court.

Question 7

Roper v. Simmons

Answer 7

1. Christopher Simmons was sentenced to death for his premeditated murder of Shirley Crook.
2. He was a minor, and sued against the death penalty based on his age (it was then acceptable in Missouri).
3. The MO Supreme Court and SCOTUS struck down the penalty based on several factors.