Warren Lee Hill, a 52-year-old man who was set to be executed in Georgia on Tuesday, was able to halt his execution on the grounds that he is mentally disabled.
The Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that the execution of criminals that are mentally ill is unconstitutional.
Hill was facing the death penalty for killing a fellow inmate, Joseph Handspike, back in 1990, by using a board studded with nails to beat him in his sleep. Hill was serving in jail, at the time, for killing his ex-girlfriend, Myra Wright.
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Hill’s defense attorney is working hard to prove that Hill is, in fact, mentally disabled beyond a reasonable doubt. He was pleased to hear that the court agreed to further review the case.
“We are greatly relieved that the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has stayed the execution of Warren Hill, a person with mental retardation. All the doctors who have examined Mr. Hill are unanimous in their diagnosis of mental retardation,” defense attorney Brian Kammer said.
Hill’s lawyers have obtained statements from the three doctors that examined Hill back in 2000 and testified that he was not mentally retarded. The new statements have the doctors saying that their analysis years ago was rushed and that new research has developed in the past 12 years making psycho analysis more accurate.
Hill also has the support of former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn.
“Georgia should not violate its own prohibition against executing individuals with serious diminished capacity,” President Carter said.
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The state remains convinced that Hill is not mentally retarded, because he served in the military and acted as the head of his household prior to conviction.
Do you believe that Hill is actually mentally retarded?
