This is Wanda Jean Allen. Wanda Jean was executed in January 2001, after spending nearly 12 years on death row in Oklahoma for murdering her former girlfriend, Gloria Leathers and despite strong evidence that Wanda Jean was mentally retarded.
No evidence of Wanda's mental impairments was presented during her trial. In a 1991 affidavit, her attorney stated that it was not until after the trial that he learned when Wanda was 15 years-old her IQ had been measured at 69 and that the doctor who examined her had recommended a neurological assessment because she manifested symptoms of brain damage. The attorney stated, "I did not search for any medical or psychological records or seek expert assistance" for use at the trial.
A psychologist conducted a comprehensive evaluation of Wanda in 1995 and found "clear and convincing evidence of cognitive and sensory-motor deficits and brain dysfunction" possibly linked to an adolescent head injury. At the age of 12, Allen had been hit by a truck and knocked unconscious, and at 14 or 15 she had been stabbed in the left temple. He found "particularly significant hemisphere dysfunction" impairing "her comprehension, her ability to logically express herself, her ability to analyze cause and effect relationships." He also concluded that Allen was "more chronically vulnerable than others to becoming disorganized by everyday stresses-- and thus more vulnerable to a loss of control under stress."
Just one year later, the Supreme Court outlawed executions of mentally retarded individuals.
But, that was one year late for Wanda Jean's family. Let's pass a prohibition on executing the severely mentally ill before it's too late for someone else's daughter....
