In 1986, the Supreme Court banned the execution of insane persons in Ford v. Wainwright (477 U.S. 399). However, in 1989, the Court held that executing persons with mental retardation was not a violation of the Eighth Amendment in Penry v. Lynaugh (492 U.S. 584). Mental retardation would instead be a mitigating factor to be considered during sentencing.
On June 20, 2002, the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling ending the execution of those with mental retardation. In Atkins v. Virginia, the Court held that it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel unusual punishment to execute death row inmates with mental retardation.
In 2002, the Supreme Court ruled in Atkins v. Virginia that executing intellectually disabled individuals …show more content…
Like the Supreme Court, the American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities uses IQ to measure intellectual ability, with a score of around 70 and “as high as 75” qualifying as limited. The adaptive behavior standard is key because it distinguishes intellectually disabled individuals from those who are able to meet the demands of everyday life despite a low …show more content…
Texas, for example, uses a set of guidelines known as the Briseño factors, which consider whether people who knew the individual as a child think he was intellectually disabled and “act in accordance with that determination”; whether the individual carried out formulated plans or conducted himself impulsively; whether the individual can lie effectively; and whether his offense required forethought, planning, and complex execution, among other considerations. The Briseño factors, which were written by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, ask Texas citizens to compare the inmate to the character of Lennie from Of Mice and Men. “Most Texas citizens might agree that Steinbeck’s Lennie should, by virtue of his lack of reasoning ability and adaptive skills, be exempt [from execution],” they read. By implication, an individual who seems less impaired than the fictional character would not be exempt. The Briseño factors are not recognized by a single clinical or scientific body.
In 2012, Texas executed Marvin Wilson, a convicted murderer who had undergone five IQ tests that determined his IQ was 61. The only psychological expert to express an opinion at his trial said he was intellectually disabled. Wilson read at around a five-year-old’s reading level and sucked his thumb into adulthood. The Supreme Court declined
On June 20, 2002, the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling ending the execution of those with mental retardation. In Atkins v. Virginia, the Court held that it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel unusual punishment to execute death row inmates with mental retardation.
In 2002, the Supreme Court ruled in Atkins v. Virginia that executing intellectually disabled individuals …show more content…
Like the Supreme Court, the American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities uses IQ to measure intellectual ability, with a score of around 70 and “as high as 75” qualifying as limited. The adaptive behavior standard is key because it distinguishes intellectually disabled individuals from those who are able to meet the demands of everyday life despite a low …show more content…
Texas, for example, uses a set of guidelines known as the Briseño factors, which consider whether people who knew the individual as a child think he was intellectually disabled and “act in accordance with that determination”; whether the individual carried out formulated plans or conducted himself impulsively; whether the individual can lie effectively; and whether his offense required forethought, planning, and complex execution, among other considerations. The Briseño factors, which were written by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, ask Texas citizens to compare the inmate to the character of Lennie from Of Mice and Men. “Most Texas citizens might agree that Steinbeck’s Lennie should, by virtue of his lack of reasoning ability and adaptive skills, be exempt [from execution],” they read. By implication, an individual who seems less impaired than the fictional character would not be exempt. The Briseño factors are not recognized by a single clinical or scientific body.
In 2012, Texas executed Marvin Wilson, a convicted murderer who had undergone five IQ tests that determined his IQ was 61. The only psychological expert to express an opinion at his trial said he was intellectually disabled. Wilson read at around a five-year-old’s reading level and sucked his thumb into adulthood. The Supreme Court declined