Tison v. Arizona (1986)
- Docket
- 84-6075
- Decided
- 1986-01-01
Summary
Question: Does the “intent to kill” requirement for the death penalty include situations where an accomplice anticipated a potential for use of lethal force? Conclusion: No. In a 5-4 decision Justice Sandra Day O’Connor wrote the majority opinion, vacating the lower judgments. The Supreme Court remanded to determine whether the Tisons acted with a reckless indifference to human life. The Court held that anticipating lethal force is not enough to satisfy the “intent to kill” requirement, but the Tisons major participation in the felony along with a reckless indifference to human life may be. Justice William J. Brennan wrote a dissent, expressing that this case illustrates how arbitrary capital sentencing is. The death penalty is always cruel and unusual punishment prohibited by the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. Justice Thurgood Marshall joined in the dissent. Justices Harry A. Blackmun and John Paul Stevens joined the dissent in part.