a. U.S. Supreme Court.

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

i. In Woodson v. North Carolina, the Supreme Court stated that a capital-sentencing process that “accords no significance to relevant facets of the character and record of the individual offender or the circumstances of the offense excludes from consideration in fixing the ultimate punishment of death the possibility of compassionate and mitigating factors stemming from the diverse frailties of humankind.” 96 S. Ct. at 2991. Further, “the fundamental respect for humanity underlying the Eighth Amendment requires consideration of the character and record of the individual offender and the circumstances of the particular offense. . . .” Id.

ii. In Lockett v. Ohio, a plurality of the Supreme Court held that a capital sentencer “may not be precluded from considering, as a mitigating factor, any aspect of the defendant’s character or record and any of the circumstances of the offense that the defendant proffers as the basis for a sentence of less than death.” 98 S. Ct. at 2965-66 (emphasis in original).

iii. In

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