WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday in a case that could make it harder for convicted murderers to show their lives should be spared because they are intellectually disabled.
The justices are taking up an appeal from Alabama, which wants to execute Joseph Clifton Smith, a man found to be intellectually disabled and shielded from execution by lower federal courts.
The Supreme Court prohibited execution of intellectually disabled people in a landmark ruling in 2002.
Joseph Clifton Smith, 55, was convicted of murder in 1997 for beating a man to death. His case hinges on the validity of his IQ scores, which range from 72 to 78, conflicting with a commonly accepted threshold for intellectual disability.
The ruling will impact how states approach borderline cases of mental competency concerning capital punishment. A federal judge indicated in 2021 that the case was particularly close and nuanced.
Smith's lawyers argue that a comprehensive evaluation of his capabilities is necessary to determine his intellectual status, opposing Alabama's argument that his scores above 70 disqualify him from being deemed disabled.
The outcome of the Supreme Court's deliberation will set a precedent, potentially altering the legal landscape surrounding capital punishment for those with intellectual disabilities.
