Booth v. Maryland
United States Supreme Court
482 U.S. 496 (1987)
- Written by Eric Miller, JD
Facts
John Booth (defendant) and Willie Reid broke into the home of Irvin and Rose Bronstein, an elderly couple, for apparent robbery purposes. The Bronsteins were bound, gagged, and stabbed to death with kitchen knives by Booth and Reid. Booth was tried before a jury, which was given discretion to determine Booth’s sentence. Background information on Booth was compiled for a presentence report. Maryland law required presentence reports to include a victim-impact statement (VIS) describing the impacts of the crime on the victim or the victim’s family. The VIS for Booth’s crime contained statements from the Bronsteins’ son, daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter describing their emotional responses to the murders. This was read to the jury. The jury found Booth guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced him to death. The Maryland Court of Appeals affirmed. Booth appealed, arguing that the words of the Bronsteins’ family members in the VIS were prejudicial and violative of the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Powell, J.)
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