John Ferguson, a man of 65, was recently executed for his crimes of murdering six people in an armed robbery in 1977 and two school students the following year. This ruling of Florida's Supreme Court isn't anything outstanding, except for the fact that the Supreme Court violated the Constitution. Ferguson's lawyers clearly argued that executing Ferguson strictly goes against the Eighth Amendment. The U.S. Constitution prohibits putting mentally ill people to death and yet Ferguson had been diagnosed for forty years as schizophrenic.
At first, this article wasn't really new considering that there are many cases in which the Supreme Court goes against their own Constitution. However, as the article progresses, the author incorporates many evidence that directly points out the wrong in the decision to execute Ferguson. Not only did it misinterpret the Eighth Amendment, but it also went against a ruling the Supreme Court had previously made in the Panetti vs. Quarterman case, in which it ruled that "a prisoner about to be executed must not only be aware of the punishment they are about to receive, but also have a "rational understanding of it.'" Because Ferguson was completely convinced that he was the prince of God and that he was captured by communists that want to bring him down, he does not meet this standard. It was also a little shocking to read that the court overlooked Ferguson's belief in his own immortality because "that...belief...was shared by millions of other American Christians." It's wrong to make a decision, going against the Constitution and their own previous ruling, based on one little statement that showed no justification of their decision. It's also upsetting that this rash decision cannot be changed because Ferguson's life has already been taken.
Article: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/05/florida-execute-mentally-ill-john-ferguson
It seems that Florida's Supreme Court rulings have been causing lots of controversy within the past few months. I agree with your stance that they should have taken more consideration to the fact that Ferguson was mentally ill. Although we should all be treated 'as equal people', of course Ferguson's circumstance would differ due to his illness. Your article had a very good flow and commentary, so further the discussion you could analyze the point of view of the author.
ReplyDeleteHey Sami! I found your article really interesting! However, I have to disagree with your stance on this article. Despite his mental illness, he had many years to contemplate about his actions. If he really did have schizophrenia shouldn't he have received help? Shouldn't there have been someone protecting taking care of him if his illness was that bad? These are the questions that were running through my mind when I was reading the article and your commentary. If his case was really severe he shouldn't have been living by himself. He should have received help.
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