Opinion ID: 1685770
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Proof of Deficits in Adaptive Behavior Prior to Age Eighteen

Text: As noted above, the trial court also found that the Defendant had exhibited deficits in adaptive behavior prior to the age of eighteen. The Court of Criminal Appeals concluded that the evidence preponderated against the trial court's findings on this point as well. Granted, the evidence on this issue was controverted. Dr. Brown relied heavily on information provided by the Defendant's adoptive mother and on a report from Youth Villages when the Defendant was nineteen years old to conclude that he had a significant deficit in adaptive functioning prior to the age of eighteen. Dr. Engum, on the other hand, cited the Defendant's ability to pass his driver's license test, operate a motor vehicle, hold a job, establish a residential living situation, and babysit a child as evidence that he was able to adapt to his environment and function at some level. Dr. Engum attributed the Defendant's problems to a variety of emotional, behavioral, motivational, and environmental problems, and potentially problems related to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder with a learning disability. He did not believe the evidence supported a finding of mental retardation prior to the age of eighteen. Nonetheless, if the trial court accredited the testimony of Dr. Brown over that of Dr. Engum, as was its prerogative, it could reasonably conclude that the evidence supported finding deficits in adaptive behavior prior to the age of eighteen. However, given that Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-13-203(a) requires the manifestation of both significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning as evidenced by a functional I.Q. of 70 or below and deficits in behavior before the age of eighteen, and given that we have affirmed the Court of Criminal Appeals' decision that the proof preponderated against the trial court's finding that the Defendant had an I.Q. of 70 or below prior to the age of eighteen, the question of whether there was proof of deficits in adaptive behavior is moot. We find it unnecessary to address this aspect of the issue.