Texas is about to execute a mentally retarded man - James Clark - even though the U.S. Supreme Court prohibits it.

Texas is about to execute a mentally retarded man even though the U.S.
Supreme Court prohibits it.

In June of 2002 the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed the execution of the mentally retarded. In Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. 304 (2002), the U.S.
Supreme Court announced that there is a national consensus that those who suffer from mentally retardation should be exempt from the death penalty.

Texas, apparently, refuses to be part of that national consensus. James Lee Clark is scheduled to be executed on April 27, 2004 in Hunstville, Texas even though two expert psychologists found him mentally retarded, ineligible for execution.

Mr. Clark was previously scheduled for execution on November 21, 2002, but his attorneys were able to show sufficient evidence that he may be retarded. When he was 15 years old, James Clark had a tested full scale IQ of 74. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted a stay and ordered the original trial court to determine whether Mr. Clark was, in fact, retarded or not.

In 2003 the prosecuting attorney hired a psychological expert to examine James Clark. Soon afterward the defense attorney hired another psychological expert to examine James Clark. Both experts found that Mr. Clark is retarded, ineligible for execution. The first expert found that James Clark has an IQ of 65 with three adaptive behavior deficiencies. The defense expert found that James Clark has an IQ of 68 with several behavior deficiencies.

Unbelievably, the prosecuting attorney fired their expert and hired another expert. Not surprisingly this third "expert" found that Mr.
Clark isn't retarded. Reprehensibly, this third expert didn't even perform an examination of James Clark. He simply chatted with Mr. Clark for a couple of hours. The first two experts performed thorough standardized testing, taking 6 and 7.5 hours each.

Unbelievably, the trial judge who presided over the subsequent Atkins hearing for Mr. Clark decided that she knew better than these two experts, the only two experts who had performed thorough tests on Mr.
Clark. She found that Mr. Clark isn't retarded, and on March 3, 2003 the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals accepted the trial judge's finding.

Again, and simply put, Texas is planning to execute a man who is mentally retarded.

The undersigned call on Texas Governor Rick Perry to do whatever possible to stop this injustice. Gov. Perry has the authority to have the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles investigate James Clark's case.
Gov. Petty can issue James Clark a 30-day reprieve, hopefully giving Mr. Clark's attorneys sufficient time to pursue appeals in the federal courts.