NCJ Number
96537
Journal
Cleveland State Law Review Volume: 32 Issue: 2 Dated: (1983-84) Pages: 263-293
Date Published
1984
Length
31 pages
Annotation
The United States Supreme Court found in Lockett v. Ohio that Ohio's capital statute violated the 8th and 14th amendments to the Constitution because the statute permitted consideration of only three mitigating factors.
Abstract
This note analyzes opinions handed down since the enactment of Ohio's capital statute on October 19, 1981, increasing the number of statutory mitigating factors from three to seven, to ascertain whether the various mitigating factors adequately meet the concerns detailed by the Lockett Court. It contains a brief overview of Ohio's capital plan, examines four mitigating factors (mental disease or defect, the youth of the offender, lack of significant history, and any other factors), and explores the treatment of the mitigating factors in the weighing process. The major problem for the defendant is establishing the presence of the mitigating factors so that it may be weighed properly against the aggravating circumstances. This problem is caused by the lack of a standard for burden of proof, meaning that a mitigating factor is never really established as required. Consequently, some mitigating factors may never rise to a level competent to outweigh the aggravating circumstances present in the case. The Ohio statute fails to provide independent mitigating weight to proferred evidence, i.e., independent from the issue of guilt determined at the trial stage. This fundamental failure is evident in many cases where the court imposed death on the offender. Simply increasing the number of mitigating factors that the sentencer may consider has not cured the statute of serious defects. A total of 198 footnotes are provided.