Question

Why are individuals with intellectual disabilities not allowed to be sentenced to death?(1 point)
Responses

Roper v. Simmons found this sentencing to be unconstitutional.
Roper v. Simmons found this sentencing to be unconstitutional.

It is considered cruel and unusual, because by the nature of their diagnosis, these individuals have a lessened ability to understand the severity of their crimes.
It is considered cruel and unusual, because by the nature of their diagnosis, these individuals have a lessened ability to understand the severity of their crimes.

Individuals with intellectual disabilities are only allowed to be sentenced to death for homicide.
Individuals with intellectual disabilities are only allowed to be sentenced to death for homicide.

They are not over the age of 18, so they cannot understand the severity of their crimes.

Answer 1

The correct response is: **It is considered cruel and unusual, because by the nature of their diagnosis, these individuals have a lessened ability to understand the severity of their crimes.**

This principle is upheld in the U.S. legal system, particularly through the Supreme Court's decision in Atkins v. Virginia (2002), which ruled that executing individuals with intellectual disabilities violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.