reality
03-23-2004, 11:01 AM
Hola! KS Bills Relating to Cognitive Disability and the Death Penalty
Update/Action Alert on Kansas Bills Relating to Cognitive Disability
and the Death Penalty
March 16, 2004
This email is covering the complex issue of persons who have
cognitive disability and whether or not they should be subject to the
death penalty. There are differing bills in the House and Senate, so
after a brief general explanation, I will cover each bill and its
actions separately. Even though this is a longer, more complex
issue, please do read this and contact your legislators. It is very
important!
General Background to the Overall Issue:
In 2002, the US Supreme Court banned the execution of the mentally
retarded. In that Atkins decision, they referenced the American
Association on Mental Retardation and American Psychiatric
Association language on mental retardation. The Court said that
states must use the "consensus" language in their statutes relative
to the death penalty and the mentally retarded.
The consensus definition of mental retardation has 3 components:
1) onset/discovery before age 18,
2) IQ that is 2 standard deviations below normal (thus an IQ of 70 or
less), and
3) deficits in adaptive behavior that are noted in the areas of
conceptual, social and practical adaptive skills.
Current Kansas language banning the execution of the mentally
retarded does not meet the consensus MR definition set in that 2002
ruling.
Bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate these past 2
sessions to address this noncompliance with the Atkins decision.
This issue is also important in relation to the question of the death
penalty. Persons who have these disabilities cannot think through
the consequences of their actions the way a person without the
disability can. Their "culpability" is less. It can also impact
their ability to work with their attorneys if they are charged with a
capital crime. That is very important when death penalty defense
attorneys try to discuss legal matters with their clients.
House Bill 2349
This bill, introduced in 2003, contains a revised definition of
mental retardation for the death penalty statute, and provides for
legal avenues to raise this issue in capital cases. Its impact is
limited to persons who were under the age of 18 at the time of their
disability onset/discovery.
House Corrections and Juvenile Justice will hear this bill on
Thursday, March 18. Members of the Committee are: Representatives
Loyd, Chairperson; Owens, Vice-Chairperson; Carter, Goering, Gordon,
Horst, Huntington, Kassebaum, OšMalley, Swenson, Yoder.
Ward, Ranking Minority Member; Carlin, Crow, Dillmore, Faust-Goudeau,
Pauls.
If your Representative is on this committee, contact them immediately
with this message rewritten in your own words:
"I support HB 2349. It is important for Kansas to be in
compliance with the requirements set by the United States Supreme
Court regarding the death penalty and mentally retarded persons.
This bill should be expanded to include all persons who have
cognitive disability regardless of the age of onset. Kansas should
not be executing anyone of any age who has a diminished IQ and
deficits in their conceptual, practical or social skills. Such
persons are not as culpable for their actions as persons who don't
have a disability are."
Email addresses available for House:
http://www.kslegislature.org/houseroster/index.html
Postal mail: State Capitol, Topeka, KS 66612
Representative Phone (via switchboard to connect to your Senatoršs
office): 1-785-296-0111
To leave a message for them to call you back: 1-800-432-3924
If your Representative is not on the committee, no action is needed
at this time. We do not know how the committee will alter the bill
when it takes final action after the hearing.
SB 355: Cognitive Disability and the Death Penalty
This legislation would prohibit the execution of any person with a
cognitive disability regardless of age of onset. The legislation
defines cognitive disability as an IQ two standard deviations below
normal along with deficits in adaptive behavior as noted in
conceptual, social and practical adaptive skills.
Background
Judicial Council drafted a bill which would correct Kansas' MR
definition problem, and take the concept at the core of the 2002 case
(cognitive impairment that impacts overall culpability for onešs
acts) and extend the ban to persons with cognitive disability arising
at any age.
This bill was heard on February 10 in Senate Judiciary Committee.
No opponents testified at the hearing. The day after the hearing,
prosecutors began to publicly object to the bill. Senate Judiciary
passed the bill out to the full Senate. There were ongoing vigorous
objections by prosecutors, primarily from Sedgwick County. The
Sedgwick County DA's staff emailed and visited Senators and voiced
strong concern about the impact of this bill upon cases in their
local area. Ultimately the bill was sent back to Judiciary without a
vote by the full Senate. It remains in Senate Judiciary as of March
15.
Action needed
Please contact Judiciary Committee members and courteously urge
them to support SB 355 and move it the full Senate.
The key message is:
ŗIt is not right or fair to protect one sector with cognitive
disability (the mentally retarded) and to exclude those persons whose
disability was discovered or suffered post age 18. Kansas should not
execute anyone with a cognitive disability as defined in this bill.
This bill needs to be sent to the full Senate for its consideration!˛
Judiciary Committee members and the email addresses:
Senator John Vratil, Chair, vratil@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Ed Pugh, Vice-Chair, pugh@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Barbara Allen allen@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Les Donovan donovan@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Senator Lana Oleen oleen@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Kay OšConnor o'connor@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Derek Schmidt schmidt@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Dwayne Umbarger umbarger@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Greta Goodwin, Ranking Minority Member
goodwin@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Donald Betts betts@senate.state.ks.us
Senator David Haley haley@senate.state.ks.us
Postal mail: State Capitol, Topeka, KS 66612
To send an email to your own Senator, you can access his/her
email at
http://www.kslegislature.org/senateroster/index.html
Senator Phone (via switchboard to connect to your Senatoršs
office): 1-785-296-0111
This email Legislative update prepared by Donna Schneweis CSJ
dms2@mindspring.com
Update/Action Alert on Kansas Bills Relating to Cognitive Disability
and the Death Penalty
March 16, 2004
This email is covering the complex issue of persons who have
cognitive disability and whether or not they should be subject to the
death penalty. There are differing bills in the House and Senate, so
after a brief general explanation, I will cover each bill and its
actions separately. Even though this is a longer, more complex
issue, please do read this and contact your legislators. It is very
important!
General Background to the Overall Issue:
In 2002, the US Supreme Court banned the execution of the mentally
retarded. In that Atkins decision, they referenced the American
Association on Mental Retardation and American Psychiatric
Association language on mental retardation. The Court said that
states must use the "consensus" language in their statutes relative
to the death penalty and the mentally retarded.
The consensus definition of mental retardation has 3 components:
1) onset/discovery before age 18,
2) IQ that is 2 standard deviations below normal (thus an IQ of 70 or
less), and
3) deficits in adaptive behavior that are noted in the areas of
conceptual, social and practical adaptive skills.
Current Kansas language banning the execution of the mentally
retarded does not meet the consensus MR definition set in that 2002
ruling.
Bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate these past 2
sessions to address this noncompliance with the Atkins decision.
This issue is also important in relation to the question of the death
penalty. Persons who have these disabilities cannot think through
the consequences of their actions the way a person without the
disability can. Their "culpability" is less. It can also impact
their ability to work with their attorneys if they are charged with a
capital crime. That is very important when death penalty defense
attorneys try to discuss legal matters with their clients.
House Bill 2349
This bill, introduced in 2003, contains a revised definition of
mental retardation for the death penalty statute, and provides for
legal avenues to raise this issue in capital cases. Its impact is
limited to persons who were under the age of 18 at the time of their
disability onset/discovery.
House Corrections and Juvenile Justice will hear this bill on
Thursday, March 18. Members of the Committee are: Representatives
Loyd, Chairperson; Owens, Vice-Chairperson; Carter, Goering, Gordon,
Horst, Huntington, Kassebaum, OšMalley, Swenson, Yoder.
Ward, Ranking Minority Member; Carlin, Crow, Dillmore, Faust-Goudeau,
Pauls.
If your Representative is on this committee, contact them immediately
with this message rewritten in your own words:
"I support HB 2349. It is important for Kansas to be in
compliance with the requirements set by the United States Supreme
Court regarding the death penalty and mentally retarded persons.
This bill should be expanded to include all persons who have
cognitive disability regardless of the age of onset. Kansas should
not be executing anyone of any age who has a diminished IQ and
deficits in their conceptual, practical or social skills. Such
persons are not as culpable for their actions as persons who don't
have a disability are."
Email addresses available for House:
http://www.kslegislature.org/houseroster/index.html
Postal mail: State Capitol, Topeka, KS 66612
Representative Phone (via switchboard to connect to your Senatoršs
office): 1-785-296-0111
To leave a message for them to call you back: 1-800-432-3924
If your Representative is not on the committee, no action is needed
at this time. We do not know how the committee will alter the bill
when it takes final action after the hearing.
SB 355: Cognitive Disability and the Death Penalty
This legislation would prohibit the execution of any person with a
cognitive disability regardless of age of onset. The legislation
defines cognitive disability as an IQ two standard deviations below
normal along with deficits in adaptive behavior as noted in
conceptual, social and practical adaptive skills.
Background
Judicial Council drafted a bill which would correct Kansas' MR
definition problem, and take the concept at the core of the 2002 case
(cognitive impairment that impacts overall culpability for onešs
acts) and extend the ban to persons with cognitive disability arising
at any age.
This bill was heard on February 10 in Senate Judiciary Committee.
No opponents testified at the hearing. The day after the hearing,
prosecutors began to publicly object to the bill. Senate Judiciary
passed the bill out to the full Senate. There were ongoing vigorous
objections by prosecutors, primarily from Sedgwick County. The
Sedgwick County DA's staff emailed and visited Senators and voiced
strong concern about the impact of this bill upon cases in their
local area. Ultimately the bill was sent back to Judiciary without a
vote by the full Senate. It remains in Senate Judiciary as of March
15.
Action needed
Please contact Judiciary Committee members and courteously urge
them to support SB 355 and move it the full Senate.
The key message is:
ŗIt is not right or fair to protect one sector with cognitive
disability (the mentally retarded) and to exclude those persons whose
disability was discovered or suffered post age 18. Kansas should not
execute anyone with a cognitive disability as defined in this bill.
This bill needs to be sent to the full Senate for its consideration!˛
Judiciary Committee members and the email addresses:
Senator John Vratil, Chair, vratil@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Ed Pugh, Vice-Chair, pugh@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Barbara Allen allen@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Les Donovan donovan@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Senator Lana Oleen oleen@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Kay OšConnor o'connor@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Derek Schmidt schmidt@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Dwayne Umbarger umbarger@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Greta Goodwin, Ranking Minority Member
goodwin@senate.state.ks.us
Senator Donald Betts betts@senate.state.ks.us
Senator David Haley haley@senate.state.ks.us
Postal mail: State Capitol, Topeka, KS 66612
To send an email to your own Senator, you can access his/her
email at
http://www.kslegislature.org/senateroster/index.html
Senator Phone (via switchboard to connect to your Senatoršs
office): 1-785-296-0111
This email Legislative update prepared by Donna Schneweis CSJ
dms2@mindspring.com