The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law in America. Amendments are part of the Constitution. The first 10 Amendments, or Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1789. The Eighth Amendment to the ...

After serving 15 years behind bars, Barela was released in 2023 and is now on parole. By sharing her experience of being forced to share a living space with a man under California's new policy, Barela ...

On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear argument in an Eighth Amendment case, City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson. One thing I will be watching for is whether the justices in their questions treat ...

The U.S. Constitution famously outlaws "cruel and unusual punishments." But there's another, far more obscure part of the Constitution called the Excessive Fines Clause, which basically says that the ...

WASHINGTON − The Supreme Court declined Monday to decide whether a permanent voting ban on people convicted of felonies in Mississippi is cruel and unusual punishment. The court, in 2023, had also ...

GRANTS PASS, Ore.–Welcome to Grant’s Pass, a city of 38,000 that grew weary of people sleeping or camping on public property. Grant’s Pass is before–you guessed it–the Supreme Court of the United ...

In a 6-to-3 decision that should have been slam-bang unanimous, the Supreme Court ruled today in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson that a city does not violate the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and ...

Our political class seems to be of the belief that bombarding us with nonstop, mind-numbing, repetitive political ads, ad nauseam, is the way to garner votes. This is cruel and unusual punishment, ...

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Supreme Court decided on Friday that cities can enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outdoors in West Coast areas where shelter space is lacking. The case is the most ...

Editor's note: This is a regular feature on issues related to the Constitution and civics education written by Paul G. Summers, retired judge and state attorney general. The U.S. Constitution is the ...