The Nation - News from Feb. 14, 1985

The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that castration is an unconstitutional “form of mutilation” and ordered three convicted rapists to be resentenced because they had been given the choice of castration or 30 years in prison. In a 3-2 decision, the justices ruled that the lower court’s sentence was void because castration is cruel and unusual punishment prohibited by the state Constitution. Judges “cannot impose conditions which are illegal and void as against public policy,” the decision said.