US Supreme Court denies reprieve for mentally retarded Texas death row inmate
The US Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Mathis’s attorneys for a reprieve. His defense team had argued that his execution violated the Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment due to Mathis’s mental retardation.
Mathis’s attorneys also claimed that the condemned man was the victim of a “freakish coincidence of federal judicial error and state procedural law” which prevented his mental impairment claim to be considered in federal court. A federal judge’s earlier denial of a stay of execution has precluded litigation in state district court.
Mathis came within a day of execution in 2005 before it was halted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals so it could review his claims.
The US high court ruled in 2002 in Atkins v. Virginia that the mentally retarded cannot be executed. (See “ Divided US Supreme Court ruling bans execution of the mentally retarded ”.) However, the Supreme Court justices left it to the states to determine how to decide whether a person has mental disabilities. Prior to this decision, an estimated 44 mentally retarded people were executed between 1984 and 2002.
Milton Mathis was convicted and sentenced to death in the December 15, 1998 murders of Travis Brown III, 25, and Daniel Hibbard, 31. Mathis’s third victim, Melanie Almaguer, 15 years old at the time, was shot in the head and remains paralyzed from the neck down.
In 1999, Mathis scored 62 on a standardized IQ test administered by the Texas correctional system. This was 8 to 13 points below the generally agreed threshold for mental retardation. The state, however, had based its argument that Mathis was not mentally retarded on a childhood IQ score of 79 on a test the defense contended may have been outdated and unreliable.
Post-trial, an experienced forensic psychologist conducted five different mental evaluations of Mathis. One of these tests was the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS III), considered the gold standard by mental health experts. Mathis scored 64 on the WAIS III, slightly higher than the correctional system score.
After administering the series of tests, conducting a full-day interview with Mathis, and reviewing court affidavits and previous tests, the forensic psychologist concluded that Mathis had mental retardation. The state, however, characterized the WAIS III test as “too subjective.” They also pointed to “racial bias” that stereotypes African-Americans as unintelligent, perversely seizing on this to deem Mathis “fit” for execution!
Cough Syrup Abuse Deaths - News
State prosecutors also said the low test scores may have been the result of heavy drug use, including PCP and “Fry,” a marijuana cigarette soaked in embalming fluid, laced with PCP, codeine cough syrup, and alcohol. Mathis's attorneys did not dispute
No more hopes of getting the classes I wanted, thanks to a retching cough. I was miserable. As I put my head back down on the pillow, I told myself everything happens for a reason, and that for some reason, I was in bed doped up on cough syrup instead
Madrid - Panama has appealed a Spanish court decision to shelve an investigation into a medical scandal that caused the death of hundreds of people in the Central American country, daily El Pais reported Tuesday. A Barcelona-based retail company had
Cough syrup goes by the street name DX. Andrew says he got a "really spaced-out buzz" from downing 150ml of Robitussin. However, the laxative side effect was unpleasant. Magic mushrooms are in season and kids have scoured school grounds for crops,
Purple Stuff is one of the many nicknames used for a drink concoction whose primary ingredient is cough syrup (codeine and promethazine). It also is known as "Lean," "Sizzurp," "Syrup" and "Purple Drank." Lean is a dangerous drink, one capable of
'Robo Tripping' – the New High in Town | Addiction
Beware parents; a new drug trend is in town. It’s relatively inexpensive, and your child doesn’t have to look any further than home to get it. ‘Robo Tripping,’ or getting high on cough syrups such as Robitussin are becoming more popular amongst teens. In fact, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reported that data from a 2006 survey revealed that approximately 3 million adolescents aged 12 to 25 admitted to abusing cough syrup to get high.
The wide appeal lies in the fact that it is easy and inconspicuous to access. Most every household has some form of cough syrup hanging around in the medicine cabinet. And, what parent worries about their kid abusing cough syrup? There are so many other things out there to consume the mind of a parent – alcohol, marijuana, and cigarettes all seem more likely threats.
While fatal overdose on cough syrup doesn’t seem likely, experts say that it can happen. The greatest risk for danger occurs when the drug dextromethorphan in cough syrup is co-mingled with stimulants like caffeine found in soda or energy drinks or prescription medications used to treat ADHD. Dr. Michael Entrup, an anesthesiologist at Rhode Island Hospital said that he has seen kids have near-death experiences. He recalls cases where normal kids who overdosed on cough syrup were admitted to the ER with shifts in blood pressure, abnormal heartbeat, and motor function irregularity.
Eighteen-year-old Carl Fetko wasn’t so lucky. He had finished his senior year and had just been accepted into the Memphis College of Art. He would never attend. His mom Misty Fetko, a nurse, found him dead in his bedroom one summer morning in 2003 after he had overdosed on cough medicine. She did recall finding some empty Robitussin bottles but said she never thought they were related to a drug problem.
Kids consume high doses of cough medicine or large quantities of lozenges because doing so causes them to have out-of-body sensations and hallucinations. The active ingredient in most cough medicines, dextromethorphan, is what causes the sensation. Unassuming adolescents will consume up to 50 times the recommended dosage in order to get high – a dangerous amount that can also cause them to easily slip into a state of unconsciousness.
While the Partnership for a Drug-Free America says that the attractiveness of certain drugs such as Ecstasy, LSD and GHB (the date rape drug) have waned over the years, abuse of over-the-counter medications is on the rise. The scariest part is that these unsuspecting medications are gaining popularity among the nation’s most vulnerable and inexperienced – teens. A 2006 study released by the California Poison Control Center showed that three-fourths of all users were in between the ages of 9 and 17.
Cough Syrup Abuse Deaths - Bookshelf
Criminal conduct and substance abuse treatment for adolescents, pathways to self-discovery and change : the provider's guide
Dextromethorphan: cough syrup anyone? The amount of dextromethorphan found in most cough syrups is not harmful. However, abuse can occur using the "extra ...Drug and alcohol abuse, a clinical guide to diagnosis and treatment
P. Study of 2708 heroin-related deaths in north-eastern Italy 1985-98 to establish ... A. Abuse of codeine- containing cough syrups: A report from India. ...Substances of Abuse
Over-the-counter drugs, especially cough and cold medications are becoming ... number of deaths where the abuse of over-the-counter medicines was a factor. ...Addiction medicine, an evidence-based handbook
Most reports of abuse and intoxication from these drugs have been related ... or more) of dextromethorphan-containing cough syrup may experience euphoria, ...Discovering Psychology
Today, however, most of the 20000 unintentional overdose deaths that occur ... Heroin Cough Syrup Opium and its derivatives, including heroin, morphine, ...Daily Report Directory
USATODAY.com - Youths risk death in latest drug abuse trend
Youths risk death in latest drug abuse trend. By Donna Leinwand, USA TODAY ... Whether in cough syrup or pills, DXM costs just a few dollars, is " ...
Cough Medicine Addiction and DXM Abuse Information
Cough medicine and DXM addiction effects and treatment options.
Why the FDA must curb cough syrup abuse
Cough syrup containing a non-regulated ingredient, dextromethorphan, is on display on a ... .The Internet is driving the spread of cough medicine abuse. ...
Cough and Cold Medicine Abuse
For decades, teens have been raiding the medicine cabinet for a quick, cheap, and legal high from over-the-counter cough and cold medicines. Only now, there are more ...
Child Abuse l Syrup Abuse l Drugging Children l BabyZone
Parents who give their babies a dose of cough syrup to get them to sleep may want to reconsider—it may be considered child abuse.