Scott Panetti shot and killed his in-laws Joe and Amanda Alvarado in 1992 in front of his wife and then-three-year-old daughter. Convicted in 1995, he is set to be executed by lethal injection Wednesday, but will Texas push through with it? So far, it appears likely, although his lawyers are asking the courts to stop the execution because Panetti is mentally ill.
Diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1978, Panetti has been in and out of hospitals over a dozen times to undergo treatment. During his own trial, he dressed up in a purple cowboy suit and attempted to call on over 200 witnesses including Jesus Christ and the pope. He also introduced the court to an alternate personality called "Sarge" to testify.
According to Panetti's lawyers, Kathryn Kase and Gregory Wiercioch, his mental condition has gravely deteriorated so he should be eligible to undergo a new round of tests to determine his competency, which will then determine whether or not his execution should be stayed.
State lawyers countered that records don't show any significant changes in Panetti since he was last formally examined seven years ago. Not to mention that no court has ever found him insane or incompetent during his trial and the subsequent appeals his camp filed.
"Panetti's assertion of severe mental illness are in doubt when compared to the multiple past findings on his sanity, competency to stand trial and competency to be executed, as well as evidence submitted by the state. Panetti's case is an inappropriate one to create a new rule of law," said Ellen Stewart-Klein, assistant Texas attorney general.
The Supreme Court ruled in 1986 that states can't execute killers who have been established to be insane such that they can't comprehend why they are being put to death. Justices expanded the provision in 2002 to prohibit the execution of all mentally impaired. In 2007, ruling on Panetti's appeal, the court said the mentally ill may be executed if they exhibit rational and factual understanding of why they are being punished.
Chances of stopping his execution are growing slim for Panetti as the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles have already voted not to recommend changing his death sentence to life imprisonment, rejecting as well a request to delay his execution. His biggest hope now lies in Governor Rick Perry, who can delay his execution for up to 30 days to allow for a mental evaluation. Perry, however, is not allowed by the law to lift a death sentence.
