Which of the following best describes the ruling in Furman v. Georgia?

The ruling in Furman v. Georgia is fundamentally connected to the concept of proportionality in sentencing, particularly with respect to the death penalty. The Supreme Court's decision in this case, delivered in 1972, established that the application of the death penalty in a discriminatory manner violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The Court indicated that death penalty sentences must not only be consistent with the nature and severity of the crime but also equitably administered to avoid arbitrary application.

This ruling focused on the fact that, at that time, the death penalty was often applied in a capricious manner, which raised significant concerns regarding its fairness and proportionality. As a result, the Court concluded that this lack of a consistent standard resulted in sentences that could not be justified as being proportionate to the crimes committed, leading to significant moral and legal implications for the enforcement of capital punishment.

Thus, the correct description of the ruling revolves around the principle that sentences, especially capital ones, must be proportional to the severity of the offense in question, reinforcing the need for a fair criminal justice process.