Posted on 11/16/2004 6:27:13 PM PST by crushelits
Texas courts had turned down LaRoyce Lathair Smith's appeal of his sentence for the January 1991 killing of a Taco Bell manager during a robbery attempt in Dallas. The victim, 19-year-old Jennifer Soto, was pistol-whipped, shot and stabbed with a butcher knife.
In the ruling, justices cited their decision nearly five months ago in the case of another Texas death row inmate, Robert Tennard, which opened the door to new challenges from several dozen condemned men in Texas who claim they have low IQs and were not given enough chance to present mitigating evidence to a jury.
more...
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
What the ???? The US court did this?
someone kills someone, they are crazy. What is the big deal?
The Supremes in D.C. If you've got some disability AND commit a murder, you're spared Death Row. Next they'll exempt the deaf, blind and lame. <sarcasm
He has mitigating "learning disabilites", but was intelligent enough to know that he needed to get rid of the witness.
People with learning disabilities so severe that they can't learn not to pistol-whip, shoot, and stab other people, need to be locked up BEFORE they commit violent crimes. I'm sick of these thugs getting off easy after some attorney presents a huge pile of well-documented evidence that the perp had been known for years to be mentally incompetent, and yet was still roaming the streets unsupervised. Mental defectives need to be given some incentive to give up their freedom BEFORE they commit violent crimes -- the incentive should be that after they commit one, they'll be prohibited from using the mental defectiveness excuse.
he did the crime..... he has to pay for it ....
A little primer on Texas Criminal Justice
This is the state that ruled a criminal defense lawyer falling asleep at trial was not reversible error, but in fact a trial tactic to develop sympathy with the jury.
The Texas Supreme Court also ruled that there was no conflict of interest when the Prosecutor and Jury foreman were in fact close friends of 10+ years and the jury foreman lied about any relationship during voir dire.
There's a difference between pro-prosecutor are railroading. Adn Texas is in the latter category.
I've got no problem with a stiff sentence, but the bottom line is the only way for a Texas prosecutor to not get a conviction is to show-up in court in drag singing Village People tunes.
This is the crap we used to get in the 1970's all the time, before Reagan.
yep .....
Hey...I'm almost deaf!....does this give me a pass to kill?...what a bunch of stupid monkeys!
Next they will declare criminality to be a psychological disability and will then exempt criminals from severe sentencing.
And this has what to do with SCOTUS saying the lower courts should have permitted his low IQ to be brought out? Does this mean only smart people can commit murder and be put to death?
Crazy, Crazy Court.
If his I.Q. is high enough to evade capture, it is may be high enough to convince his captors that he has a low I.Q.
Only those within the norm must be punished for riding high on the Bell Curve.
Stuff a sock in his mouth, stick a needle in his arm and be done with him.
He admits to the crime and still uses the "I'm a retard" excuse. I wish all the criminals would just move to a more enlightened state and then they could kill all they want, be understood and maybe get put back in general population to repeat the crime.
yes.. there is definitely some intellectual limitation in this story..
No. What I am saying is there has to be balance in the system. And currently, there is very little. Justice must be just. Too much power for any constituency -- even one you agree with -- is dangerous.
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