Hundreds of Mentally Ill to Be Executed in America

"Amnesty International is asking that hundreds of mentally ill people facing the death penalty in American prisons have their sentences commuted."

"Ten percent of the first 1,000 people executed in the United States since 1977 suffered from illnesses ranging from schizophrenia to post-traumatic stress disorder and brain damage, the leading rights watchdog and opponent of capital punishment said in a report released Tuesday."

"Another 3,400 people remain on death row and 5-10 percent of them have mental illnesses, Amnesty said, citing estimates by the National Institute of Mental Health."

It's amazing to me that we can be so cruel as to execute the mentally ill. I won't pretend not to be for executing certain criminals, but my criteria would restrict it to the point where it would be extremely rare, and certainly not include anyone with any mental problems.

Not just because of the failure to prevent executions of mentally ill, but the way in which it's unfairly implemented in this country, I want to see an end to the death penalty, as well as mandatory sentencing, which is also unfair.