I've had several questions and comments from readers regarding the case of Bruce Webster. The Dallas Morning News highlighted the case in a recent news article and editorial, noted at the links.
The Webster case is a federal death penalty case, prosecuted under and controlled by federal law, rather than a state death sentence.
The Morning News editorial called on the Texas Legislature to pass legislation that would spell out the process to determine whether or not a defendant has mental retardation in capital cases. Such a law, if passed by the Texas Legislature, would apply only to state prosecutions.
The Texas Legislature passed legislation in 2001 to ban the execution of those with mental retardation, but the legislation was vetoed by Governor Rick Perry. One year later the Supreme Court ruled in Atkins v.
Virginia that the death penalty was unconstitutional for those with mental retardation.
In the four subsequent Texas legislative sessions, lawmakers have been unable to agree on legislation dealing with the issue; establishing a process for those currently on death row to investigate and examine claims of mental retardation, as well as a process for those individuals charged with capital murder who need to present evidence of mental retardation. In both instances, state courts deal with the MR issue on an ad hoc basis.
Related posts are in the mental retardation index.
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