Bono vs Southeast (this time for real)

[Ebowed]

I would like to join the plaintiff in this case, specifically in regards to this initiative's violation of the Southeast's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment, although I agree with his argument that this initiative unfairly violates one's freedom of religion as well.

[Ebowed]

Initiative 144, as certified passed on July 24, 2006, with eight votes in favor and five against, states in part: "Those who violate the law by practicing necromancy or otherwise magically bringing the dead back to life shall be burned at the stake..."  Clause 32 of the Southeast Bill of Rights (Article VI of our Constitution) states "No magistrate, or court of law, shall demand excessive bail or sureties, impose excessive fines, or inflict cruel or unusual punishments."

The punishment of execution by burning is currently not prescribed for any crimes except the participation in necromancy.  This method of execution, if used with burning wood, will either cause the convict to die from poison by carbon monoxide if the fire is large; if the fire is small, the convict will burn for several minutes in pain until death from heatstroke or loss of blood plasma.  If gunpowder is substituted for wood, it will explode on contact with the flames, providing a quick but painful death.  If the convict is not blown up, they may die from a combination of shock, burning of the lungs and air passages, or smoke inhalation, all of which will take a considerable amount of time to kill and cause extreme pain.  Historically, this method has been applied with the intent to cause as much pain to the convict as possible.

Over time in the last few centuries as standards have increased, this method has been phased out in favor of more humane methods such as hanging, death by firing squad, or lethal injection.  Its only known modern uses have been in undeveloped countries where witchcraft is still sometimes punished by death.  This is brought up not because of any particular importance regarding international precedence, but because of the fact that this method of execution has been near universally prohibited for so long due especially to its cruelty makes it an unusual punishment, the type that our Bill of Rights prohibits.

There is no doubt that burning at the stake has long been recognized as a form of cruel and unusual punishment.  The Anti-Necromancy Initiative is in clear violation of the Bill of Rights regarding this matter; any law prescribing execution by burning is unconstitutional under Article VI, Clause 32 of the Southeast Constitution.