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Shelby Keimel
ENC 2135-0038
Professor Isaacs
5 March 2017
Draft 2
Research Question: Due to the lack of healthcare and diagnosis of mental illnesses such as
Schizophrenia, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Insanity, would individuals convicted of
Capital punishment has become a large debate within society as the realization that
undiagnosed mentally ill individuals have been sentenced to ultimate penalty has come forth.
With recent losses of lives such as those involved in the Sandy Hook Elementary School
shooting and the Aurora, Connecticut movie theatre shooting, the fate of of the accused has come
under fire. With the absence of just healthcare and diagnosis of such, those suspected of having a
mental illness should not be subject to the same penalties as those without these ailments. Justice
is needed for those killed in such tragedies, but is there justice in killing a sick individual?
Before one can understand the severity of capital punishment, mental illness and the
different forms it can appear need to be understood. Four major illnesses have been linked to the
death penalty in a multitude of different cases. According the National Coalition to Abolish the
Death Penalty, 2.2 million adults in the United States are affected by Schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is a mental illness that inhibits ones ability to distinguish reality from fantasy.
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With symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions, it is difficult to level with a schizophrenic
during an episode. Therefore, in cases with a schizophrenic on trial, it becomes very difficult
for an attorney to talk with or discuss a crime or solution with the accused. In 1983, John Errol
Ferguson was sentenced to capital punishment, but many years before in 1965, he was admitted
into an institution as a schizophrenic. This deemed Ferguson very aggressive and it was highly
recommended he should not be released. Unfortunately, in 1976, Ferguson was released and
committed the ultimate crime, murdering 8 individuals. The attorney on the case argued to the
court that Ferguson was unfit for the death penalty due to his lack of mental stability, but to no
avail, Ferguson was deemed sane enough for the highest punishment. This case highlights the
flaws not only in the healthcare system, but also within the court as Fergusons mental stability
was tested near the ends of his life with a test that the Supreme Court has actually abandoned.
Mental illness connected with execution is not limited to solely one illness. Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder, which can linked with war veterans, is just as prevalent in the courts
as Schizophrenia. Also referred to as PTSD, this illness is considered and anxiety based
condition. Two of the most major symptoms of PTSD that mostly relate to an individual being in
court are re-experiencing traumatic events and a increased arousal. These two symptoms
combined can be deadly, and are the reason PTSD victims find themselves sitting in front of a
jury. As stated, many individuals thought to have PTSD are war veterans, which is the case of
Manny Babbit. In 1980, Babbit murdered a woman. Like the previous case discussed, Babbits
lawyer was unable to successfully argue mental illness to the court to further save Babbits life. It
was noted that although Babbit never denied the murder, he admitted not remembering
committing the crime. Sadly, this becomes the case for many mental illness victims as Mental
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Health America states that five to ten percent of inmates or those going to trial suffer from severe
mental illness. Stepping back, although ten percent may seem to be minuscule, it is ten percent
more than there should be and a goal of the United States should be to eliminate these numbers
Lastly, but largely, insanity is another major illness within our society and can even be
combined with the above discussed illnesses. In cases regarding insanity, lawyers must be able to
argue that their client lacks the sanity to defend his or herself. In the recent case of Larry Hatten,
who was executed in October 2015, instead of assisting his attorney to further postpone the case,