Georgia lawmakers consider easing one of the nation’s toughest death penalty laws

ATLANTA - Last year, Georgia executed Willie James Pye, whose IQ was low enough to indicate that he was intellectually disabled, according to his lawyers.

That rattled Glennville Republican state Rep. Bill Werkheiser, who months earlier had introduced legislation to make it easier for someone facing the death penalty to prove they are intellectually disabled and thus ineligible to receive the death penalty.

The backstory:

In 1988, Georgia became the first state to prohibit the execution of intellectually disabled individuals, a stance later echoed by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2002. The Court ruled that executing intellectually disabled people violates constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment but left it to states to define the criteria for intellectual disability. Georgia stands out with its stringent requirement that defendants prove intellectual disability beyond a reasonable doubt, a standard unmatched by any other state.

What we know:

The execution of Willie James Pye last year, despite his lawyers' claims of intellectual disability, has reignited the debate over Georgia's death penalty standards. Pye was convicted for the 1993 abduction, rape, and murder of Alicia Lynn Yarbrough. His case, along with others like Warren Lee Hill's execution in 2015, highlights the challenges defendants face under Georgia's current legal framework. In 2021, the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the death penalty for Rodney Young, citing his failure to prove intellectual disability beyond a reasonable doubt.

What they're saying:

State Rep. Bill Werkheiser, a Republican from Glennville, has been a vocal advocate for reform. "I believe it is incumbent upon the state to protect those who cannot protect themselves," Werkheiser stated. His legislative efforts aim to lower the burden of proof for intellectual disability in death penalty cases. The proposed bill, which passed the House unanimously and is now pending in the Senate, seeks to allow defendants to present evidence of intellectual disability at a pretrial hearing and, if found guilty, in a separate process before the same jury.

The other side:

Prosecutors, including T. Wright Barksdale III, district attorney for the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit, have expressed concerns about the proposed changes. While not opposed to altering the reasonable doubt standard, they resist modifications to the trial process and the introduction of a pretrial hearing. Barksdale argues that the bill "cherry-picks from several different states" and could complicate the legal process, potentially hindering the imposition of the death penalty. "As this law is constructed, and based on my experience of trying capital cases, it would for all intents and purposes cripple us to a point that we would never have a real fair shot at ever obtaining a death penalty for anyone," he said.

Why you should care:

The debate over Georgia's death penalty standards is not just a legal issue but a moral one. As Rep. Esther Panitch, a Sandy Springs Democrat and criminal defense attorney, emphasized, "If we’re going to mete out the ultimate punishment, it should only be for the worst of the worst, and those we have spent the time to make sure understand their culpability." The outcome of this legislative effort could set a precedent for how intellectual disability is assessed in capital cases, impacting the lives of defendants and the integrity of the justice system.