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The Prison Journal
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Capital Punishment and the Mentally Retarded Offender

Peggy M. Tobolowsky

University of North Texas

In Atkins v. Virginia, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the execution of mentally retarded offenders is constitutionally prohibited by the Eighth Amendment—a holding directly opposite to the conclusion it reached on this issue 13 years previously in Penry v. Lynaugh. This article examines the specific holdings in these two landmark decisions dealing with mentally retarded capital offenders as well as the roles they play in the evolution of the Supreme Court’s capital punishment jurisprudence.

Key Words: mentally retarded • national consensus • proportionality • punishment purpose • Penry • Atkins

The Prison Journal, Vol. 84, No. 3, 340-360 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0032885504268182
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