Cruel and Unusual Punishment

In one of the lengthiest, noisiest, and hottest legal debates in U.S. history, Cruel and Unusual Punishment stands out as a levelheaded, even handed, and thorough analysis of the issue. Melusky and Pesto, who are not identified, discuss the theoretical and historical evolution of constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment in the US. They analyze issues and present excerpts from relevant documents and court decisions, public opinion survey results, statistical data, and a few secondary sources. Readers are not assumed to have any background in law. Offers students a complex, even handed understanding of one of the nation's most polarized legal debates, and raw materials with which to formulate their own opinions, excerpts from landmark decisions and federal sentencing guidelines and data from state statistics and public opinion polls.