By Tim Collins
Marvin Wilson was a man with severe mental impairments making him child-like. He had an IQ of only 61, yet he was executed by lethal injection for his crimes. Wilson, 54, was found guilty of killing a police informant twenty years ago. Despite the best efforts of his attorneys to have his death sentence changed to life, a high court found in favor of the state.
As he died in front of gathered family members he cried out his final words: ‘Give mom a hug for me and tell her that I love her.’
He continued, ‘Take me home, Jesus. Take me home, Lord. I ain’t left yet, must be a miracle. I am a miracle.’ He was declared dead at 6:27pm local time.
The execution of a man with mental impairments sets a new precedent in America. If some one has the IQ of a child, is it okay to punish children as adults? Children as young as 6 often know right from wrong, so is it acceptable to put a 6 year old in jail for shop lifting or for fighting with another child?
Of course when you look at the concept of punishing a child as you would an adult, it seems a little excessive. Recently Philadelphia, there was a home invasion by children aged 7, 9, and 10. Should these children be sent to prison for their crimes?
As a country we call ourselves a Christian nation, yet the idea of mercy seems to be lost on many citizens. When we think of a child strapped to a gurny and being prepared for lethal injection, our response is to cringe and say it’s not right. In America, there are many citizens who suffer from mental deficiencies. These can run from autism to mental retardation. If a man who was suffering from mental retardation killed his neighbor, but was found to have the mentality of a 5 year old, would we consider death okay for him?
The execution of Marvin Wilson could have repercussions that none of us has truly thought about. Wilson’s execution could have opened the flood gates on capital punishment for all citizens regardless of age or mental capacity. Alternatively, this execution shows how far from God America has fallen.For those on the right cheering this man’s death, it seems you might need to read the Bible again. Maybe you forgot about the ‘judge not’ thing.
Related articles
- State of Texas executes RETARDED INMATE! IQ at 61! (investmentwatchblog.com)
- Marvin Wilson Execution: Texas Puts Man With 61 IQ To Death (huffingtonpost.com)
- Texas executes ‘low IQ’ inmate (timesofmalta.com)
- Scalia Denies Stay, Texas Executes Mentally Retarded Man (news.firedoglake.com)
