40 years after Furman, the U.S. Death Penalty Is In Disarray

40 years after Furman, the U.S. Death Penalty Is In Disarray: June 29 marks the 40th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case Furman v. Georgia. In Furman, the high court abolished the death penalty on the grounds that it violated the Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The decision also barred the use of capital punishment for rape convictions.