Supreme Court Finds Death Penalty for Juvenile Killers Unconstitutional

Good news. The Associated Press reports:

The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Constitution forbids the execution of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes, ending a practice used in 19 states. The 5-4 decision throws out the death sentences of about 70 juvenile murderers and bars states from seeking to execute minors for future crimes. The executions, the court said, were unconstitutionally cruel.

The majority opinion was written by Kennedy.

Update: Professor Bitch has a short, excellent critique of Scalia's use of abortion in his dissent.  In summary, what the Court has done is erred on the side of preserving individual liberty when faced with uncertainty over a person's ability to reason morally.  Thus, the state must restrain itself from limiting the medical options of teens who seek abortions, and the state must restrain itself from executing teens who murder (as it must do in the case of mental retardation, too).   Scalia, the categorical authoritarian, can only see the "illegitimate" Court imposing its views on legislatures.  Prof. B. also takes apart his rhetoric: "It seems to me that ... Scalia is implying that there is some kind of parallel between punishing children for murder and "punishing" children for getting pregnant."  Outstanding.

SCOTUSBlog and TalkLeft have other reactions, analyses and links to the opinions on the Court's site. 

More: The Claremont Institute hates the result, which tells you what you need to know about its rightness.

Even More: LATimes.com:

The ruling's greatest impact will be felt in Texas. Thirteen of the 22 juvenile murders who have been put to death in the United States over the past two decades have been executed in Texas.