The proportionality principle breaks down across the historical range of capital offenses

Evidence

The application of retribution is problematic in a number of ways. There are wide variations over time and across cultures in the types of offenses that are punishable by death. At one time the death penalty was imposed for kidnapping, adultery, robbery, theft, blasphemy, Sabbath violations, hijacking, counterfeiting, drug trafficking, prostitution, arson, and rape. In patriarchal cultures, females are killed for conduct believed to bring shame on the family. Such offenses usually involve violations of social norms and traditions. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 1879

Categorization

• ADDENDUM: Directly extends the honor-killing material in ‘Complaints About Immodesty Go Way Back’ — the list of shame-conduct executions parallels that essay’s cross-cultural dress moral panics.
• SHARE: The historical list of capital offenses (Sabbath violations, blasphemy, counterfeiting) is a great tidbit for a legal-history friend.