Should the death penalty be considered cruel and unusual punishment? This was the question brought before the United States Supreme Court in 1972. In FURMAN V. GEORGIA: THE DEATH PENALTY CASE, author D. J. Herda examines the ideas and arguments behind this landmark case. Presented in a lively, thought-provoking overview, Herda brings to life the people and events of this controversial decision and sheds light on the current controversy still raging across the country today.

In the summer of 1967, William Henry Furman broke into a house in Savannah, Georgia. He carried a pistol that night in case he ran into trouble, but he never intended to fire the gun. Instead, his plan was simply to rob the house as quickly and quietly as possible without running into anyone. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned for Furman. There are different accounts of what happened next, but one thing is known for sure: Before Furman fled the house, his gun went off and killed a man. William Furman was convicted of murder and sentenced to die in the electric chair. This chain of events provides the background for the Supreme Court's landmark death penalty ruling in Furman v. Georgia. This new title in the celebrated Great Supreme Court Decisions series recounts the story behind one of the most controversial cases ever to hit the nation's highest court.

Discusses the history of capital punishment, explains the United States Supreme Court's decision in Furman v. Georgia, and explores the impact of this case.

Examines the 1972 Supreme Court case Furman v. Georgia in regard to the death penalty.

The death penalty is surely one of the most highly contentious points the Supreme Court has had to weigh in on. Whether you believe in the death penalty or not, the Furman v. Georgia case was groundbreaking in its decision to stay Furman’s execution because it was arbitrary and, very possibly, racially motivated. Though it did not stop capital punishment, the case changed the way states had to weigh their decisions. Also included are questions to consider, primary source documents, and a chronology of the case.

A Pulitzer Prize-winning historian takes a new and closer look at the Supreme Court's controversial and much-debated stance on capital punishment in the landmark case of Furman v. Georgia.