Article VIII: What Does It Really Mean? Article VIII states: “ Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment” (American Experience, p. 22). Excessive bail was borrowed with a few slight changes from the English Bill of Rights Act. The concept of bail in both England and in the United States was never thought as right to bail in all cases, but to provide that bail would not be excessive …showed first 75 words of 1279 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1279 total…in the fear of being robbed, murdered, kidnapped, etc. Recently there have a large number of crimes where lots of people have been killed and it seems right that these crimes should have a large bail set. But for other less sever crimes, more reasonable bail should be considered. Bibliography 1) Green, Martin, ed., Core II The American Experience. Acton: Copley Custom Publishing Group, 1998. 2) “U.S. Constitution: Eighth Amendment: Annotations.” Internet. 3 June 1999. Available: www.FindLaw.com