A Unified Constitutional View of Financial Punishment: Synthesizing the Excessive Fines Clause and Bearden-Based Protections
dc.contributor.author | Feinzig, Joshua M. | |
dc.date | 2021-11-25T13:36:37.000 | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2021-11-26T12:32:34Z | |
dc.date.available | 2021-11-26T12:32:34Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2020-01-01T00:00:00-08:00 | |
dc.identifier | ylsspps_papers/132 | |
dc.identifier.contextkey | 20390626 | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13051/17752 | |
dc.description.abstract | This Note coordinates the Eighth Amendment Excessive Fines Clause with the Fourteenth Amendment wealth-discrimination protection set forth in Bearden v. Georgia. It is generally assumed that the two protections operate independently: while the Excessive Fines Clause protects individuals against exorbitant financial obligations, Bearden limits the state from converting criminal debt into a severe liberty deprivation. But in recognizing how the two doctrines are normatively and functionally reinforcing, this Note proposes a single framework for considering financial punishment’s constitutionality. If the Eighth Amendment protection applies at the imposition of a financial punishment, Bearden provides a “second look” at the constitutionality of that punishment. Or, put another way, the Eighth Amendment is a preemptive look at the downstream poverty-based liberty deprivations that Bearden secures individuals against. Appreciating this relationship affords additional authority to both protections, and suggests a number of improvements to existing safeguards. | |
dc.title | A Unified Constitutional View of Financial Punishment: Synthesizing the Excessive Fines Clause and Bearden-Based Protections | |
dc.source.journaltitle | Student Prize Papers | |
refterms.dateFOA | 2021-11-26T12:32:34Z | |
dc.identifier.legacycoverpage | https://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/ylsspps_papers/132 | |
dc.identifier.legacyfulltext | https://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1134&context=ylsspps_papers&unstamped=1 |