In it a Reporter played by Chevy Chase goes down to the old South from Los Angeles. He goes to inherit his Aunt's estate. He meets the caretaker, a man who says he's always worked in the house, and his family worked in the house before him. Fletch asks. "Have you ever heard of the Emancipation Proclamation?" The man says. "No, it didn't get too much press here about."
I have to imagine that that conversation takes place from time to time with our police and especially the guards who sprayed that man down with Pepper spray to punish him. "Have you ever heard of the Eight Amendment?" They look confused. "No, they didn't mention that during training."
Pepper Spray was marketed as a means of stopping an attack. If someone was about to assault you, you could defend yourself by spraying this product. If a crowd was unruly and rioting, it could be dispersed with the pepper spray. It was intended to be a less than lethal means of using force. It was not marketed, nor do I believe it was intended to be used in a punitive manner. If it had been marketed as a way to make them pay, I think it would have been banned long before now. The Guards know they can't tie a guy up and flog him with a cat o nine tails. They know they aren't allowed to tie the guy down and beat him with a phone book, rubber hose, or whatever. But they want us to believe they don't know why those rules are in place. Oh, it was that we weren't supposed to cause harm in violation of cruel and unusual punishment? I thought it was that it could cause permanent harm. My bad. So if we can't tie the guy down and pepper spray him, can we tie him down and use our tasers? How about a car battery and some jumper cables?
Honestly, if I was the Governor of the state that happened in, or if it was a Federal facility and I was the President, I'd commute his sentence on the spot. Time served, you've already been punished far more than society intended. Feel free to sue and have your lawyer call me as a witness if you like. When people start to complain, tell them that the answer they seek is in the eighth amendment. Read that and get back to me.
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