The Bill of Rights - Amendment VIII

"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted"

This one is pretty much self-explanatory. Now the fun part comes when people try to determine what "excessive bail, excessive fines, or cruel and unusual punishments".

The Supreme Court is currently looking into a case that will have ramifications in TN, and 35 other states, regarding whether or not a three-drug cocktail that we use for execution by lethal injection can be considered cruel and unusual punishment. Each drug in the injection is supposed to perform a different function. The argument against the three-drug protocol is that if the initial anesthetic does not take hold, a third drug that stops the heart can cause excruciating pain. The second drug, meanwhile, paralyzes the prisoner, rendering him unable to express his discomfort. So far, Justice Scalia has stated that "There is no painless requirement" in the Constitution. I'll be really interested in the outcome of this one. Personally, I think we should go back to firing squad, one bullet and three blanks is a much cheaper, and less painful, way to accomplish the same thing.