The death sentence is perhaps the most controversial topic discussed in our time. Over all, whether you believe in the power of execution or not, it is universally agreed upon that the mentally disabled should not be executed. Depending on the mental disability, they do not have a complete grasp over what they are doing. In Florida, there is a man, Freddie Lee Hall, who is on death row and is planned to be executed soon. I am not sure if this is a nationwide law, but in Florida they cannot execute anyone with an IQ below 70, because they fall under the category of mentally disabled. Hall has an IQ ranging from the 60's to the 70's, though it is said it mostly falls within the low 70's. Apparently multiple psychologists have stated that Hall is indeed mentally disabled, yet the state plans to continue with the execution.
I personally do not agree with this sentence. Yes, his IQ may vary. However, if it is even sometimes in the 60's range he should not be executed. Even in the 70's that is an very low IQ. The article did not state what he did, so I can only assume he is a murderer. If his IQ was in the 60's, that is the range of mental disability. I know from personal matters how mentally handicapped people function, and often they are not capable of understanding rights and wrongs the way the "normal" person does. (I put normal in quotations because the mentally handicapped are not abnormal, strange, or anything of the sort: they just function differently, and what is wrong with that?) If this man has an IQ that low, he should be getting help and treatment, not the death penalty. The death penalty should only be a last resort measure. I mean very last resort, like Hitler. A man even on the verge of disability should not be sentenced to the worst punishment. That does not mean whatever he did was right: he should pay for what he did. But is death the only way to deal with this? People say that he will just take up more tax dollars, but it is archaic to just get rid of someone who has been named disabled by multiple psychologists for the sake of saving a few dollars. He should be getting help to understand fully that what he did was wrong.
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/national/supreme-court-hears-debate-executing-mentally-disa/nd4ZN/
I completely agree! The death penalty should be a very last resort. A lot of European countries oppose America's death penalty. I hope this man gets help, rather than an end.
ReplyDeleteAshley Barnes 2nd
I am curious to know what Freddie Lee Hall's crime was. But, of course, I entirely agree with you assessment of the situation. The death penalty is expensive, morally questionable, and in most states executed with astonishing incompetence.
ReplyDeleteThis is definitely a reoccurring issue in the United States. It seems as though it would be difficult to determine a person's saneness due to there being no black and white definition of mentally stable or mentally unstable. Also, the act of killing another human being (in the any context) is deliberating towards the brain. Also, in the context of killing another person in the context of personal gain for the murderer (or no motive at all) it is very rare that the murderer is mentally stable.
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