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Hegseth could lead troops who'd face getting fired for actions he's done in the past; Strong Santa Ana winds return for SoCal; Southeast Asian refugees in MA fear deportation, seek Biden pardon; RSV rise puts Indiana hospitals on alert; CT lawmakers urged to focus on LGBTQ+ legislation.

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The Special Counsel's report says Donald Trump would have been convicted for election interference. Defense Secretary pick Pete Hegseth faces harsh questioning from Senate Democrats, and law enforcement will be increased for next week's inauguration.

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"Drill, baby, drill" is a tough sell for oil and gas companies in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, rising sea levels create struggles for Washington's coastal communities, and more folks than ever are taking advantage of America's great outdoors.

Proposed Bill Would Ban Death Penalty for Severely Mentally Ill Persons

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Thursday, February 6, 2020   

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Kentucky lawmakers are considering a bill that would prevent seriously mentally ill defendants from receiving the death penalty.

A handful of other states, including Ohio, Virginia and Indiana, recently have pushed similar legislation.

Patrick Delahanty, director of advocacy for the Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, says the bill does not exclude everyone with some form of mental illness from capital punishment -- only those with severe disorders such as schizophrenia.

"And so, it doesn't seem fair in a system of justice that seeks to punish someone and also show people the difference between good and bad," he states.

Delahanty says the bill is similar to a Kentucky law passed in the early 1990s that bars people deemed to be mentally disabled from being executed.

House Bill 237 is co-sponsored by Rep. Chad McCoy, a Republican from Bardstown, and nearly 30 other legislators.

Critics say the mentally ill are disproportionately given the death penalty. One analysis found more than 40% of people executed between 2000 and 2015 in the U.S. had been diagnosed with some form of mental illness.

Delahanty says mentally ill defendants still would be eligible for life sentences.

"They do need to be in a place where they are not able to harm people," he states. "And so, they would be eligible for prison terms, and lengthy prisons terms, including up to life without parole."

The National Alliance on Mental Illness and other groups have publicly stated their opposition to executing people with serious mental health issues.


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