Opinion ID: 1705889
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Execution by Lethal Injection and First Amendment Rights.

Text: ¶ 84. Spicer contends that the use of pavulon, the second drug in Mississippi's lethal injection protocol, which is designed to paralyze the condemned, amounts to an, unconstitutional prior restraint of speech. His argument is similar to his Eighth-Amendment argument in that he claims that, if the sodium pentothal, the first drug administered, is not given correctly and he remains conscious while the third drug, potassium chloride, tis administered, he could suffer great pain and be unable to speak out or otherwise express himself to his executioner. Therefore, Spicer submits that there is no legitimate justification for the restraint of his speech caused by the use of pavulon and that the restraint is over-broad because it does not provide an alternative avenue for expression. ¶ 85. Again, this issue was capable of being raised at trial or on direct appeal and now is procedurally barred from further consideration on collateral appeal. Miss.Code Ann. § 99-39-21(1) (Rev.2007). See also Jordan, 918 So.2d at 661. ¶ 86. Notwithstanding the procedural bar, the issue also is without merit. We look to our sister state of Florida. The Supreme Court of Florida considered this exact argument in Rolling v. State, 944 So.2d 176, 180 (Fla.2006). In that case, Rolling asserted that the circuit court erred in denying an evidentiary hearing on his claim that the administration of pancuronium bromide violates his free speech rights as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. Id. Rolling argued, specifically, that the administration of pancuronium bromide, which paralyzes the muscles, violated his right to free speech because it would render him unable to communicate feelings of pain that may result if the execution procedure is not performed properly. Id. The circuit court summarily denied Rolling's claim. On appeal, the Supreme Court of Florida ruled that because Rolling could not demonstrate that the chemicals involved in lethal injection would be administered improperly in his case, Rolling's argument was without merit and he was not entitled to any relief on his First Amendment claim. Id. See also Rutherford v. State, 926 So.2d 1100, 1114-15 (Fla.2006). ¶ 87. Florida's Rolling case is on-point and persuasive. Spicer has provided no sworn testimony or affidavit to support his contention that the lethal-injection protocol will not be effective on him or that it will otherwise be improperly administered in his case. Spicer's claim is without merit. GROUND V. MENTAL RETARDATION. ¶ 88. In Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. 304, 122 S.Ct. 2242, 153 L.Ed.2d 335 (2002), the United States Supreme Court determined that imposing the death penalty on mentally retarded inmates constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Id. at 321, 122 S.Ct. 2242. Two definitions of mental retardation were cited by the Atkins majority. The first was from the American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR). Mental retardation refers to substantial limitations in present functioning. It is characterized by significantly subaverage intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with related limitations in two or more of the following applicable adaptive' skill areas: communication, self-care, community use, self-direction, health and safety, functional academics, leisure, and work. Mental retardation manifests before age 18. Id. at 308, n. 3, 122 S.Ct. 2242 (citing Mental Retardation: Definition, Classification, and Systems of Support 5 (9th ed.1992)). The second definition came from the American Psychiatric Association. The essential feature of Mental Retardation is significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning (Criterion A) that is accompanied by significant limitations in adaptive functioning in at least two of the following skill areas: communication, self-care, home living, social/interpersonal skills, use of community resources, self-direction, functional academic skills, work, leisure, health, and safety (Criterion B). The onset must occur before age 18 years (Criterion C). Mental Retardation has many different etiologies and may be seen as a final common pathway of various pathological processes that affect the functioning of the central nervous system. Id. (citing Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 39 (4th ed.2000)). ¶ 89. The Atkins court did not define who is or is not mentally retarded for purposes of eligibility for a death sentence but instead leaves to the States the task of developing appropriate ways to enforce the constitutional restriction upon [their] execution of sentences. Atkins, 536 U.S. at 317; 122 S.Ct. 2242 (quoting Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399, 405, 416-17, 106 S.Ct. 2595, 91 L.Ed.2d 335 (1986)). ¶ 90. In Chase v. State, 873 So.2d 1013, 1023 (Miss.2004), this Court set forth specific requirements to be followed by the small number of persons with mental retardation claims convicted before Atkins and Chase were handed down. [3] ¶ 91. This Court announced the requirements for obtaining a hearing to determine whether a capital defendant is mentally retarded as follows: With the sole exception discussed below, no defendant may be granted a hearing on the issue of Eighth Amendment protection from execution, due to alleged mental retardation unless, prior to the expiration of the deadline set by the trial court for filing motions, the defendant shall have filed with the trial court a motion, seeking such hearing. The defendant must attach to the motion an affidavit from at least one expert, qualified as described above, who opines, to a reasonable degree of certainty, that: (1) the defendant has a combined Intelligence Quotient (IQ) of 75 or below, and; (2) in the opinion of the expert, there is a reasonable basis to believe that, upon further testing, the defendant will be found to be mentally retarded, as defined herein. Upon receiving such motion with attached affidavit, and any response filed by the State, the trial court shall provide a reasonable amount of time for testing the defendant for mental retardation. Thereafter, the trial court shall set a hearing on the motion, and the matter shall proceed. Chase, 873 So.2d at 1029. This Court further held: . . . that no defendant may be adjudged mentally retarded for purposes of the Eighth Amendment, unless such defendant produces, at a minimum, an expert who expresses an opinion, to a reasonable degree of certainty, that: 1. The defendant is mentally retarded, as that term is defined by the American Association on Mental Retardation and/or The American Psychiatric Association; 2. The defendant has completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-II (MMPI-II) and/or other similar tests, and the defendant is not malingering. Such expert must be a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist, qualified as an expert in the field of assessing mental retardation, and further qualified as an expert in the administration and interpretation of tests, and in the evaluation of persons, for purposes of determining mental retardation. Upon meeting this initial requirement to go forward, the defendant may present such other opinions and evidence as the trial court may allow pursuant to the Mississippi Rules of Evidence. Id. ¶ 92. Later, in, Lynch v. State, 951 So.2d 549 (Miss.2007), this Court held that . . . in Mississippi it is acceptable to utilize the MMPI-II and/or other similar tests. [ Chase ] at 1029. This Court did not intend by its holding to declare the MMPI-II or any one test as exclusively sufficient. Having a variety of tests at their disposal, courts are provided with a safeguard from possible manipulation of results and diminished accuracy which might result if courts are limited to one test. The United States Supreme Court mentioned the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales Test. See Atkins, 536 U.S. at 309 n. 5[, 122 S.Ct. 2242]. Other tests, as suggested by mental health experts, include the Structured Interview of Reported Symptoms (SIRS), the Validity Indicator Profile (VIP), and the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM). Id. at (¶ 23). The Court's interpretation in this case as to the proper test to be administered with regard to an Atkins hearing supercedes any contrary decisions. This Court neither endorses the MMPI-II as the best test nor declares that it is a required test, and decisions that state otherwise are expressly overruled. Id. at (¶ 24). ¶ 93. To support, his contention that he is mentally retarded and therefore constitutionally, protected from execution, Spicer offers the affidavit of Dr. Marc L. Zimmerman, a forensic psychologist. Dr. Zimmerman stated that he met with Spicer and conducted the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale III (WAIS III), Screening Tests for Luria-Nebraska Neurological Battery, Short Category Test, Benton Visual Retention test, Wide Range Achievement Test 3, and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 2. Dr. Zimmerman concluded from the test results that Spicer has a full-scale IQ of 75, that Spicer likely suffers from depression and probably bipolar disorder. Dr. Zimmerman also stated that, based on his findings, he was able to conclude that Spicer functions in the mildly-retarded-to-borderline range of intellectual ability. ¶ 94. What Dr. Zimmerman did not state in his affidavit, and which is required by Chase, is whether or not Spicer was malingering. This is disturbing because other medical reports evidence Spicer's history of malingering. Specifically, the casenotes from the Mississippi State Hospital assessment of Spicer for the purpose of determining whether Spicer was competent to stand trial and assist in his defense, opined that Spicer was malingering. In the Addendum to Outpatient Evaluation Results of Psychological Testing, under the heading Malingering, the report stated: The M-Test is a brief measure designed to assess the presence of someone grossly feigning psychotic symptoms. Mr. Spicer obtained a total score of 0, suggesting that he was not attempting to malinger unusual psychotic symptoms. However, he did report more common symptoms, such as experiencing auditory hallucinations and feelings that other people are controlling him and his thoughts. On the TOMM, a test designed to assess feigned memory problems, Mr. Spicer earned scores suggesting that he was attempting to feign memory problems on the second trial of this instrument. Further, under the heading Summary, the doctors describe Spicer as follows: Mr. Spicer is a 37-year-old, divorced, Caucasian man from George County charged with capital murder. Test results and clinical observations suggest that the defendant attempted to malinger memory and cognitive deficits on measures of memory, intelligence, achievement, and mental status, perhaps in an attempt to mitigate his legal problems. Additionally, he produced some incomplete and invalid test profiles, despite the evaluators prompting that he complete test measures. As a whole, the minimal effort he exerted towards genuinely answering test items raises questions regarding the validity of the results obtained from all of the tests administered. The defendant endorsed items suggesting that he meets criteria for a substance dependence, disorder that is commensurate with his reported substance abuse history. ¶ 95. The doctors also noted that Spicer was given the MMPI-II and that he produced an invalid profile because he omitted seventy-five items on the instrument and refused to respond to the omitted items, despite prompting by the examiner. There are other notations by the doctors indicating that Spicer would not complete testing. Under the heading Intellectual, on the same addendum report, the doctor wrote: On the Shipley, a brief screening measure of intellectual functioning, [Spicer] obtained an invalid score, estimating a WAIS-R Full Scale IQ of 46 and placing him in the Moderately Mentally Retarded range of intelligence. Mr. Spicer's score was invalid due to his failure to complete this measure as he only attempted to respond to 13 of 60 items. On the WRAT-3, a measure designed to assess academic achievement, [Spicer] obtained Reading, Spelling and Arithmetic standard scores below 45, placing him in the 1st grade and kindergarten levels. These scores are believed to be a gross underestimation of his current level of academic achievement, as he did not appear to put forth a genuine effort in correctly answering test items. ¶ 96. It is clear from Spicer's prior mental evaluation that he has a history of malingering, perhaps in an attempt to mitigate his legal problems. Dr. Zimmerman's affidavit did not discuss whether Spicer was malingering and does not fulfill the requirements of Chase. ¶ 97. This Court's holding in Chase also requires that. Dr. Zimmerman provide his opinion, to a reasonable degree of certainty, that Spicer is mentally retarded, as that term is defined by the American Association on Mental Retardation and/or the American Psychiatric Association. Both of these definitions, as quoted above, take into consideration not only subaverage intellectual functioning, but also concurrent functional limitations in at least two of the listed adaptive skills. Dr. Zimmerman did not state in his affidavit that Spicer meets the definition of mentally retarded as defined by the American Association on Mental Retardation or the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Zimmerman did not discuss Spicer's adaptive skills at all. In short, Spicer has failed to meet the requirements set forth by this Court in Chase.