The punishment generally may not be imposed for a crime against an individual when the victim did not die. A state remains free to abolish capital punishment or create protections broader than the federal constitutional floor. Suppose a jury considers the circumstances of a homicide, the defendant's history, and both aggravating and mitigating evidence under a guided statute. That process is not automatically unconstitutional merely because death remains an available sentence. By contrast, a statute ordering death without individualized sentencing fails the constitutional rule. The death penalty belongs to the punishment stage, after guilt has been determined; questions about the fairness of the earlier trial may invoke separate Fifth or Sixth Amendment protections. A common mistake is to assume that the Court has either approved every capital sentence or prohibited capital punishment altogether. Current doctrine permits it only within categorical and procedural boundaries.

Video lesson: Due Process of Law: Crash Course Government and Politics #28