Non voters give away power
Meet standards of decency Dear Editor:
The Supreme Court of the United States has spoken and now it is time for the General Assembly of Pennsylvania to act to ensure that the mentally retarded are spared from the death penalty.
In its ruling in Atkins v. Virginia, declaring that the execution of mentally retarded defendants violates the constitutional protection from cruel and unusual punishment, the Supreme Court has validated the actions of 30 of the states in prohibiting capital punishment for some of the most vulnerable members of our society.
The court ruled that the remaining 20 states that allow the execution of the mentally retarded, including Pennsylvania, must now draft statues to establish procedures to implement its ruling. Fortunately, we have a bill before the state Senate Judiciary Committee to accomplish this: Senate Bill 26, which I introduced with bipartisan support in January 2001.
Senate Bill 26 creates a three-pronged test a defendant must meet to establish mental retardation: an IQ of 70 or below, manifestation of mental retardation prior to the age of 22 and exhibition of significantly sub-average intellectual functioning and impairment in adaptive behavior. The court affirmed such burdens of proof upon defendants in Atkins.
Justice Stevens in writing the majority court opinion, spoke of “our evolving standards of decency” relating to the death penalty in cases of mental retardation. I look forward to the day Pennsylvania enacts Senate Bill 26, not only to comply with the law of our great country, but also to meet the standards of decency that the justices have so eloquently forwarded
State Sen. Edward W. Helfrick