A Victory for the Eighth Amendment – The Atlantic

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in Moore v. Texas. In a 5-3 decision, the Court ruled in favor of Bobby James Moore, a death row inmate who challenged Texas’ method for determining intellectual disability. The Court ruled that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) applied superseded medical standards, failed to account for the standard error of measurement in Moore’s IQ scores, and deviated from prevailing clinical standards by overemphasizing Moore’s perceived adaptive strengths. Read more.

 

Photo credit: Foley, Mark T., 1943-. Electric chair at Florida State Prison prior to Ted Bundy’s execution – Starke, Florida. 1986. Black & white photoprint, 8 x 10 in. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. <https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/134211>, accessed 30 March 2017.