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competency for execution  

Definition

  • The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, which, according to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ford v. Wainwright (1986), includes the execution of the insane. Thus, it is unconstitutional to execute condemned inmates who become incompetent while on death row while they remain in an incompetent state. [Source: Encyclopedia of Psychology and Law; Competency for Execution]

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URI

https://concepts.sagepub.com/social-science/concept/competency_for_execution

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