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Should Atkins impact non-capital sentences for mentally retarded defendants?

By Douglas A. Berman

This article in the Chicago Tribune, headlined "Mentally retarded Texas teen serving 100-year prison term for sex assault of boy: He admitted assaulting 7-year-old, but his retardation was not considered," raises interesting and important questions as to whether and how mental retardation ought to limit non-capital sentencing outcomes. Here is how the article starts: The crime Aaron Hart confessed to was undeniably repellent.  Last September, the 18-year-old man was charged with sexually assaulting a 7-year-old neighbor boy behind a tool shed in the small east Texas town of Paris.  A relative of the victim said she walked outside and saw Hart with his pants pulled down, standing next to the boy. Police read Hart his Miranda rights and he quickly admitted his guilt...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on April 06, 2009 (boomark / email).