U.S. Supreme Court
Court Rejects Capital Appeal Claiming Mentally Ill Lawyer
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the case of a Mississippi death row inmate whose lawyer suffered from mental illness and had never tried a capital case.
Inmate Quintez Hodges presented evidence that his lead trial lawyer was committed to a mental hospital by his parents about a year after his trial, the Associated Press reports. Hodges was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend’s brother.
Hodges’ lead lawyer was admitted to the bar less than a year before his trial, suffered from bipolar disorder and abused drugs. His parents sought his commitment because of suicidal thoughts and paranoid delusions, the Mississippi Supreme Court said in its opinion (PDF) upholding Hodges’ conviction.
