Mentally disabled inmates remain on death row | Rights & Liberties

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Mentally disabled inmates remain on death row

The Supreme Court's Atkins decision struck down executions of the mentally retarded. But dozens of mentally disabled men remain on death row in Texas, with few avenues for appeal.
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  Six of the twenty-nine men on Texas death row evaluated by Dr. George Denkowski

Despite a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Atkins v. Virginia, that banned execution of persons diagnosed with mental retardation, Texas continues to hold men with severe mental disabilities on death row. Reneé Feltz, a reporter for Free Speech Radio News, looks at Texas psychologist Dr. George Denkowski, who has served as an expert witness for the prosecution in dozens of capital cases. His evaluations have determined these defendants' eligibility for execution based on estimates of their IQ scores.

Read Feltz's related Texas Observer story, which includes an interactive graphic of the twenty-nine Atkins cases Dr. Denkowski worked on in Texas.

Support for the story was provided by the Nation Institute's Investigative Fund.

Click to play the Free Speech Radio News broadcast

Reneé Feltz is a multimedia investigative reporter based in New York City. Her beats are criminal justice and immigration. As news director for KPFT-FM in Houston, Texas she interviewed more than 25 men and women on Texas Death Row, and coordinated national coverage for the Pacifica radio network during Hurricane Katrina. She co-produ...

Reneé Feltz's reporter page »

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