Harmelin v. Michigan, No. 89-7272 (U.S. Supreme Court) (501 U.S. 957; 111 S.Ct. 2680) (June 27, 1991) (Justice Scalia)
In this case, a divided Supreme Court found that a life sentence without parole is not disproportionate to the crime of possession of 672 grams of cocaine; and it held that a defendant seeking a proportionality review must demonstrate an "initial inference of gross disproportionality."
In its decision, the Court ...
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