TCG: The Constitution and Capital Punishment (ft. Joel Zivot)

The Constitution and Capital Punishment

A conversation with Dr. Joel Zivot

The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits “cruel and unusual punishments,” yet the death penalty is legal in 27 states, American Samoa, the federal government, and the military. Is capital punishment constitutional? What is lethal injection, and does it cause suffering? Dr. Joel Zivot, associate professor of anesthesiology and surgery at Emory’s School of Medicine in Atlanta, has been to death row in six states and joins Leigh to discuss the ethics of the death sentence in America.

(Photos © Constitutional Accountability Center and FreeImages/Jonathon Hayward)

To skip the intro, fast forward to the 2:28 mark.