Benjamin Rauf, Defendant-Appellant v. State of Delaware, Plaintiff-Appellee — Strine, J., Concurring

Summary

Justice Strine concurred in the majority's answers to the certified questions, reasoning that the Sixth Amendment requires a jury to make all factual determinations necessary for a death sentence, including the ultimate weighing of aggravating and mitigating circumstances. He further concluded that the jury's death recommendation must be unanimous and supported beyond a reasonable doubt, while also identifying the Eighth Amendment's protection against cruel and unusual punishment as an alternative basis. Justice Holland, concurring, likewise concluded that judicial factfinding in the weighing process is unconstitutional; Justice Vaughn, dissenting, would have limited the jury requirement to unanimous and beyond-reasonable-doubt findings establishing death eligibility.