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CCA Sets Aside Death Sentence Due to Atkins Claim

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"Court commutes killer's sentence to life," is the AP report by Michael Graczyk, via the Dallas Morning News.An inmate from San Antonio had his death sentence commuted to life Wednesday after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decided he was mentally impaired and ineligible for execution. Timothy Cockrell who was convicted of the robbery-slaying of 35-year-old Sandra Deptawa, who was found bound, gagged, beaten and strangled in the bathtub of her home in 1992.And:At his 1993 trial, prosecutors told jurors about Cockrell's long criminal record, including 13 first-degree felony convictions over 10 years. His mental capacity also was an issue at the trial. A defense witness testified IQ tests given to Cockrell appeared to show he was in the lowest 3 percent of the population...continue to full post

Full post as published by StandDown Texas Project on June 11, 2009 (boomark / email).