- Home
- About Us
- News
- Advocacy
- Mental Health Information
- NMHA Store
- Calendar
- Affiliate Network
- Support NMHA
- Search
Death Penalty and People with Mental Illness |
||
Sample Letter Opposing the Execution of an Adult with Mental Illness or DisabilityNOTE: Your letter should be written to reflect the specific circumstances of each individual’s case. Date: The Honorable [Governor’s name] Dear Governor [Governor’s last name]: On behalf of the [Name of organization], I want to express our strong opposition to the death sentence of [Name of person to be executed] who is scheduled for execution on [date]. We urge you and the members of the [Name of state] Board of Pardons to commute the death sentence of [Name of person to be executed] to life in prison. Mental health experts have concluded that [First name of person to be executed] has [name of diagnosed disorder]. [His/her] cognitive, adaptive, perceptual, and social functions are very significantly impaired. Research indicates that adults with [name of disorder] can have severe impairments in judgment, logic, awareness, understanding, and impulse control. [Name of organization] recognizes that it can be difficult to adequately assess the complexity of cases involving criminal defendants with mental [disabilities/illness]. In this case, however there is reason to believe that an individual with a severe mental [disability/illness] might be executed without the court’s knowledge of the existence of that [disability/illness] and, therefore, without the requisite consideration of that mental [disability/illness] as a mitigating factor. [First name of person to be executed]’s mental [disability/illness] clearly constitutes a circumstance mitigating his culpability for the capital charge. For these reasons, we urge you and the members of the [Name of state] Board of Pardons to commute the death sentence of [Name of person to be executed] to life in prison. Sincerely, [Name] [Title] cc: Members of [State] Board of Pardons For more information on how to use the resources provided, contact: National Mental Health Association In providing these materials we are enabling our affiliates
to respond in a timely way to death row cases through letter-writing
campaigns and media outreach. By providing this Justice for Death
Row Inmates Resource Kit, NMHA seeks to offer its affiliates and
other advocates with important tools to empower and inform their advocacy
efforts specific to death penalty cases.
|
|
Resources Juveniles Adults with Mental Illness |
