NAMI's Response to U.S. Supreme Court Decision Allowing Execution of John Ferguson; Mental Illness Ignored

News provided by

Aug 05, 2013, 07:45 ET

ARLINGTON, Va., Aug. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) issued the following statement by Ron Honberg, national director of policy and legal affairs, in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to reject an appeal and an emergency stay in the case of John Ferguson—who was executed by the State of Florida on Monday, Aug. 5 at 6:17 p.m. ET.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100216/NAMILOGO)

"NAMI is very disappointed by the Supreme Court's decision. It let stand what we consider to be a violation of constitutional law. The tragedies of John Ferguson's original crimes are compounded now by an additional tragedy –one in which the legal system failed to recognize established medical understanding of serious mental illness.

"While we do not in any way excuse Ferguson's crimes, executing him ignores the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against executing individuals who are too ill to rationally comprehend the reason for their execution."

Last week, NAMI filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the Florida Supreme Court had applied an outdated, unconstitutional standard in reviewing Ferguson's sentence. At that time, Honberg stated that life without parole would be a more appropriate sentence.