decapitation
decapitation (dee-kap-[schwa]-tay-sh[schwa]n). Hist. The act of cutting off a head; a beheading. • This was once a common method of capital punishment.
Search Results for: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
pit and gallows
pit and gallows. Hist. Scots law. An ancient form of capital punishment for theft by which a condemned woman was drowned in a pit and a condemned man was hanged on a gallows.
plead (one’s) belly
plead (one’s) belly. Hist. Slang. (Of a female defendant) to claim pregnancy as a defense, usu. to postpone or avoid a court’s sentence of capital punishment or transportation. • A female defendant who pleaded that she was pregnant was treated with suspicion. The judge would appoint a jury of matrons (often consisting of 12 married
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lethal injection
lethal injection. An injection of a deadly substance into a prisoner in order to carry out a sentence of capital punishment.
cum fossa et furca
cum fossa et furca (k[schwa]m fos-[schwa] et f[schwa]r-k[schwa]). [Law Latin] Hist. With pit and gallows. • In ancient charters, this phrase granted Baron courts the right to try capital offenses and to inflict capital punishment.
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bill of pains and penalties
bill of pains and penalties. A legislative act that, though similar to a bill of attainder, prescribes punishment less severe than capital punishment. • Bills of pains and penalties are included within the U.S. Constitution’s ban on bills of attainder. U.S. Const. art I, § 9. [Cases: Constitutional Law 82. 5. C.J.S. Constitutional Law §§
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gain
gain, n. 1. An increase in amount, degree, or value. pecuniary gain. 1. A gain of money or of something having monetary value. 2. Criminal law. Any monetary or economic gain that serves as an impetus for the commission of an offense. • In most states, an offense and its punishment are aggravated if the
homicidium
homicidium (hom-[schwa]-sI-dee-[schwa]m), n. [Latin “felling of a person”] Homicide. homicidium ex casu (eks kay-s[y]oo). Homicide by accident. See ACCIDENTAL KILLING. homicidium ex justitia (eks j[schwa]s-tish-ee-[schwa]). Homicide in the administration of justice, or in the carrying out of a legal sentence. See justifiable homicide (2) under HOMICIDE. homicidium ex necessitate (eks n[schwa]-ses-i-tay-tee). Homicide from inevitable necessity,
firing squad
firing squad. 1. A group of persons assembled to carry out a capital-punishment sentence by shooting the prisoner with high-powered rifles at the same time from a short distance. 2. A military detachment that fires a salute, usu. during the burial ceremony for the person being honored.
court martial
court-martial, n. An ad hoc military court convened under military authority to try someone accused of violating the Uniform Code of Military Justice, particularly a member of the armed forces. [Cases: Armed Services 42; Military Justice 870–898. C.J.S. Armed Services § 166; Military Justice §§ 13, 138–158.] Pl. courts-martial. — court-martial, vb. “[C]ourts-martial are not