WekiileaksAviciiNewAlbum

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Saturday, 10 August 2013

Florida's Execution Of Mentally-Ill Mass Murderer John Ferguson Was Unconstitutional

Posted on 03:07 by Unknown

On Monday, August 5, 2013, Florida executed John Ferguson, a convicted murderer and paranoid schizophrenic. Despite previously ruling that the execution of the mentally ill is unconstitutional, the Supreme Court refused to intervene in Ferguson's case, thereby indirectly suborning the execution. Ferguson is not the first, nor likely the last, mentally-ill American to receive the death penalty in violation of the Constitution and international human rights standards. Out of respect for human rights and the protection from cruel and unusual punishment, the United States must stop executing the mentally ill.

Ferguson was found guilty of two murders and a rape he committed during a robbery in 1978 and six murders committed during a robbery in which he participated in 1977. He spent more than three decades on Florida's death row.

Ferguson is also evidently mentally ill. He has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, and he had visual hallucinations. He was hospitalized recurrently after being shot in the head by a police officer, causing a traumatic brain injury; he was 21. Doctors warned that he was "dangerously mentally ill" and that he should remain in long-term hospitalization. One doctor stated that he "did not know right from wrong nor the nature and consequences of his acts." Another stated that he was "dangerous and cannot be released under any circumstances." Nonetheless, Ferguson was released from the hospital, after which he killed several people.

As his attorney explained, "He has told psychiatrists for 40 years — that he is the Prince of God. He also told them that he would 'come back to life,' that his body would not remain in his grave, and that he was destined to be the 'only one' at the right hand of God." He also sees "shadow people" watching him and Communist plots that he will root out when he is with God. Ferguson believed the death penalty was preparing him for "ascension" into Heaven.

The United States Supreme Court has previously held that it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment to execute the mentally ill. In 2007, the Court held affirmed in Panetti v. Quarterman that the Eighth Amendment bars capital punishment for "one whose mental illness prevents him from comprehending the reasons for the penalty or its implications." In 1986, in Ford v. Wainwright, another Florida case, the Court held that "the Eighth Amendment prohibits the State from inflicting the death penalty upon a prisoner who is insane ... such an execution has questionable retributive value, presents no example to others, and thus has no deterrence value, and simply offends humanity."

The international community has also called for a ban on capital punishment for the mentally ill. Amnesty International and the United Nations have opposed the practice, including a 1984 United Nations report on the rights of those sentenced to death stating "nor shall the death sentence be carried out on … those who have become insane." The UN Commission on Human Rights also urged in 2000 that states, in cases of "a person suffering from any form of mental disorder," "not to execute any such person."

Without a doubt, the murder of those eight men and women was a horrible act of violence, and it is right and reasonable for a state to protect its citizens from violence and murder. However, that goal is not best achieved by the state-sanctioned execution of the mentally ill. John Ferguson was a mentally-ill man who did not understand the purpose of the punishment that was imposed. As such, his death grants neither a lesson nor any public safety not found in his incarceration. Thus, with his death, Florida disrespects human and constitutional rights in a way that should be wholly unacceptable in the United States.



Click here to view original article
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest
Posted in | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • "The Spectacular Now" Movie: The Best Teen Romance Film This Year
    There hasn’t been a respectable movie about young romance in years. This year's attempts at teen romance have b...
  • How Abuse Survivors Can Protect Themselves On Facebook
    Just as Twitter has been working to amend its privacy features in light of violent and threatening attacks on some prom...
  • How to Survive a D.C. Summer If You're Not Interested in Politics
    So you’re in D.C. for the summer. Chances are you’ve hit all the tourist sites in a day, learned to use the Smithso...
  • How Can Baseball Boost Viewership? Give Video Games a Shot
    It's 9 a.m. on a Sunday, and I'm still in my pajamas, toggling through a list of opponents to choose who wi...
  • Mitch McConnell Focuses Speech On Becoming Senate Majority Leader
    As his re-election campaign kicks off, the Republican Leader in the Senate tries to ignore his opponents and remind supporter...
  • Why Americans are Losing Wealth — And What to Do About It
    A series of factors have led to declining American wealth, but one thing is for sure: A growing number of Americans...
  • Watch These Hackers Invent the Future Of Assassination
    Your car may not be as safe as you believe it is. It is jarring to think that someone else can force your Toyota ...
  • Polandball: The World's Most Sophisticated Subreddit
    What is Polandball, exactly? No, it's not a Calvinball variant — it's a type of webcomic that has been stea...
  • A Year After the Aurora Shooting Massacre, Absolutely Nothing Has Changed
    Saturday's one year anniversary of the movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., came and went with and little ...
  • Watch This Kid Solve a Rubik's Cube in Less Time Than It Took to Read This Headline
    The Rubik's Cube. That pesky 3x3 cube that can make men and women out of teens or, if you're like me, a foo...

Blog Archive

  • ▼  2013 (500)
    • ▼  August (414)
      • U.S. Sanctions On Iran Are So Bad, Women Have Run ...
      • National Zoo Tiger Cubs Are a Reminder Of How Much...
      • Why Are Chinese Workers At Apple Suppliers Foxconn...
      • What One Year At PolicyMic Has Taught Me About Growth
      • 10 Memes to Help You Celebrate Eid
      • How Many Terror Threats Does the U.S. Get Every Day?
      • Mic Check: This Photo Perfectly Sums Up Obama’s Re...
      • I'm An Openly Gay Gold Medalist and I Reject the S...
      • Not Even Promising 50 Years Of Secrecy Can Get Con...
      • Lady Gaga's 'Burqa' is Supposed to Empower Muslim ...
      • Why I'm Proud to Be a Part Of Know Your IX
      • Wait Until You Read How Republicans Just Wasted Ev...
      • Them's Fightin' Words: The Case For Bringing Back ...
      • 3 New Yorkers Who Are Asking Forgiveness — And Doi...
      • French Farmers Protest EU By Destroying 100,000 Eg...
      • Here's What Obama Had to Say on Jay Leno Last Night
      • Inside America's Second Guantanamo: Bagram Airfiel...
      • Obama Leno YouTube Video: The President Says He Ha...
      • Two Males Arrested in Rehtaeh Parsons Case
      • China is Forcing 250 Million Rural Dwellers to Rel...
      • Ebony Magazine Cover Shows We Can't Give Up On You...
      • Guess Which Continent is Home to 14 of the 15 Most...
      • Gay Couple Forced to Back Of the Bus Gets An Apolo...
      • Congress Might Actually Fix a Billion-Dollar Problem
      • One Direction Fans Are Fuming Over This Harry Styl...
      • Why Cory Booker is Going to Be New Jersey's Next S...
      • Women Without Children Aren't Selfish — They're Smart
      • This Ohio Town Will Discriminate Against Minority ...
      • Boycotting the 2014 Olympics is Pointless For Gay ...
      • Sydney Leathers Will Teach You How to Bag a Weiner
      • Will Mexico's New Energy Plan Make It the Next Kuw...
      • TSA "VIPR Teams" Will Soon Be Patting You Down Out...
      • If You've Communicated With Someone Outside Of the...
      • Florida's Execution Of Mentally-Ill Mass Murderer ...
      • Latin America's Most Successful Politician? It's P...
      • How a 7% Cut to a U.S. Agency's Budget Can Take Do...
      • FEC Official Don McGahn Admits IRS Scandal Might B...
      • Detroit's Bankruptcy Could Spread Nationwide if We...
      • Seth Meyers On "Late Night" Just More Of the Same
      • 8 Coming-of-Age Films Every Millennial Needs to Watch
      • How to Get Over Your Ex in the Facebook Era
      • You're Not a Grown-Up Until You Stop Texting Your Mom
      • How Abuse Survivors Can Protect Themselves On Face...
      • PolicyMic is Debating the "B" Word This Week – Whe...
      • Can Shinzo Abe Make Japan a Superpower Again?
      • For the Simple Crime of Smoking Marijuana, the Gov...
      • How to Get Over Your Ex in the Facebook Era
      • Open Mic With Eliot Spitzer, Candidate For New Yor...
      • Happy Anniversary, Myanmar
      • Republican Threat to Shut Down Government Over Oba...
      • Polyphonic Spree Review: 'Yes It's True' Is the Ha...
      • Immigration Reform 2013: Why Did the Media Ignore ...
      • Social Security Begins Making Payments To Some Sam...
      • Can Billionaires Like Jeff Bezos and John Henry Sa...
      • Obama: "We Are Not Going To Completely Eliminate T...
      • How Hollywood Helped Hitler — and How It's Helping...
      • Obama: "I Don't Think Mr. Snowden Was A Patriot"
      • You Won't Believe What Just Happened On Reddit
      • Obama: "Mixed Success" With Putin
      • Name Which Democrat Said This: "We’re Not Broke, T...
      • Obama Opposes Olympics Boycott
      • Obama Administration Launching NSA Transparency We...
      • Why Bad TV Succeeds But Good TV Fails
      • Republican Mayoral Candidate Doesn't Want To Expla...
      • Smoking Is Not a Right
      • 5 Reasons Conservatives Don't Believe Climate Chan...
      • In Open Letter, California Sen. Barbara Boxer Tell...
      • Wisconsin Official Fired After Saying Undocumented...
      • What a Free Market Approach to Education Would Loo...
      • Congressman Suggests "Arab Persons" Might Disguise...
      • Congress' Iran Policy: Short Sighted and Irrational
      • Insane Confrontation At Oklahoma Congressman's Tow...
      • The TSA Is Turning Us Into a Stop-And-Frisk Nation
      • Terry McAuliffe Dismisses Reporter's Question On T...
      • Dronestagram Brings Drone Strikes Abroad A Little ...
      • Is Jay-Z Right About the Middle Class?
      • TSA Patdowns Coming to a Concert Near You
      • How A Democrat Dodges A Question About Wall Street...
      • International Olympics Committee Asks Russia To Pr...
      • The Fast Food Strikes Are Really About Civil Rights
      • How Jackie Chan Became The Most Hated Celeb On The...
      • Yemen Terror Threats Actually Come On Tail Of Huge...
      • Watch Anthony Weiner Struggle To Take A Reporter W...
      • Kristin Davis is Out Of Comptrol As NYC Race Gets ...
      • Democratic Gun Politics In Arkansas Senate Race Ar...
      • 5 Ways to Save Money On Health Care Costs
      • Russian U.N. Ambassador Speaks Out On Anti-LGBT Laws
      • RNC Chairman is Insane to Threaten NBC and CNN Ove...
      • 4 Ways Your Boss Will Set You Up For Failure
      • 5 Netflix Features That We Desperately Need
      • Thought Republicans Were Done With the War On Wome...
      • McDonald's Big Mac Study is a Prime Example of Wha...
      • MLB Suspensions List: 13 Baseball Players Busted F...
      • The 113th Congress Takes "Dysfunctional" to a Whol...
      • Who Does Desiree Hartstock Pick? The Sad Reality O...
      • Sean Sasser, AIDS Activist Known From MTV's "The R...
      • Obama Campaign Mastermind Jim Messina Now Working ...
      • Can Stay-At-Home Governor Andrew Cuomo Go National?
      • Burka Avenger: Can This Superhero Save Pakistan?
      • Ken Cuccinelli Joked About Drinking With Ted Kenne...
    • ►  July (86)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

Unknown
View my complete profile