Commute the Death Sentence of Joseph Murphy

Joseph Murphy was sentenced to death for the 1987 murder of Ruth Predmore. We, the undersigned, together with the family and friends of Joseph Murphy, urge Governor Kasich to commute Joseph Murphys death sentence to life without parole.

Joseph Murphy suffered severe abuse as a child, including repeated sexual abuse from various family and friends and during his stay within a psychiatric institution. This information was available at the time of trial however the mitigation expert had an insufficient amount of time and resources to prepare an accurate presentation of this information.

An expert on mental retardation never testified at trial. Murphys IQ scores have varied over the years, ranging from 54 in 1979 to 86 in 1975. Some of these scores would make him ineligible for execution due to mental retardation. Joseph has also been diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder with prominent antisocial features or mixed personality disorder. The damaging experiences Joseph suffered as a child proved influential in this diagnosis.

We deeply sympathize with the family and friends of Ruth Predmore, but we respectfully offer that another death will neither heal nor resolve this tragedy. Action petitioned for: We, the undersigned, are concerned citizens who urge Governor Kasich to commute the sentence of Joseph Murphy to life without parole.