Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment | The Mental Competence of a Murderer Can Be Difficult to Determine
At a hearing in an Arkansas courtroom in April 1998, Charles Singleton basically argued for the right to make a choice: his sanity or his life.
Mr. Singleton, 39, on death row for the 1979 murder of a grocer named Mary Lou York, is on anti-schizophrenia medication, which, the state argues, makes him mentally competent enough to be executed. But Mr. Singleton wants to stop taking the drugs, which could well make him sufficiently delusional that state psychologists would not certify him as ready to be put to death.
“We have to convince the court that you can’t...
[The entire page is 1245 words long]
Navigate
- Introduction
- Chapter 1: Is Capital Punishment Ethical?
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Chapter 2: Is Capital Punishment Administered Fairly?
- The Death Penalty and Fairness: An Overview
- Capital Punishment Is Applied Unfairly
- Racism Influences Death- Sentence Decisions
- The Litigation Process for Capital Defendants Is Unfair
- Reforms Are Needed to Prevent the Execution of Innocent People
- Claims About the Unfairness of Capital Punishment Are Unfounded
- Capital Punishment Is Not Applied Unfairly to Blacks
- Unfair Application of Capital Punishment Does Not Justify Abolishing It
- The Death Penalty Should Be Carried Out More Promptly
- Chapter 3: Is Capital Punishment an Effective Deterrent to Crime?
-
Chapter 4: Should Capital Punishment Be Abolished?
- Chapter 4 Preface
- The Death Penalty Should Be Abolished
- The Death Penalty Should Be Retained
- Capital Punishment Should Not Be Applied Unless Absolutely Necessary
- Capital Punishment Deserves Cautious Support
- Life Without Parole Is Preferable to the Death Penalty
- The Death Penalty Is Preferable to Life Without Parole
- Mentally Disadvantaged Killers Should Not Be Sentenced to Death
- The Mental Competence of a Murderer Can Be Difficult to Determine
- Organizations to Contact
- Bibliography
- Copyright
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