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Battle over controversial execution in Georgia

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    John Roberts reports from Jackson

  • Duration 3:12
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A fox urgent now a convicted killer minutes away right now from execution.

But a court has just stepped in to stop it.

Prison officials say they -- already delivered Warren hills last meal when the ruling came down.

His lawyers claim -- IQ is so low it would be unconstitutional to put him to death.

And three experts who testified that he is confident -- for execution now say.

They were wrong.

John Roberts live at the prison in Jackson Georgia -- where where -- things stand now.

We're just trying to figure all of that out -- we know that to the Supreme Court.

About a half an hour ago refused to grant a stay of execution said that the execution basically could go ahead.

And then with about twenty minutes left we heard from Brian -- who was -- -- hills attorney saying.

That stay was granted a temporary stay -- by both the eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals based in Atlanta Georgia and the Georgia Court of Appeals.

At the very last minute.

The reason why the stay in it was a temporary what was -- by the Georgia Court of Appeals was because they want to look into the lethal injection process here in Georgia it was recently changed from a three drug combination to a single drug combination.

The eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals wants to hear some new evidence -- that new evidence as you alluded to.

Is the three.

Medical professionals to psychiatrists and a psychologist to examine -- back in the year 2000 -- then said that they believed he was in the parlance of the day.

Not mentally retarded.

Last Thursday those three same doctors came out and said they made a mistake.

The back in 2000 they did not have all the facts they did not have the experience according to one.

Doctor Thomas Saatchi he said my judgment that mr.

-- did not meet the criteria for mild mental retardation was in error.

Going on to say that he has an IQ of approximately.

Seventy.

So the eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals wants a lower court to look into all of this new evidence of the steps of the Georgia capitol today.

A number of hill's supporters held a press conference to say that.

Should he be executed it would definitely be a miscarriage of justice really young as with all about developmental disabilities here's what she -- We believe that anything.

-- -- to death who has an intellectual disability is an injustice Supreme Court has made has given a categorical exemptions individuals who have intellectual disabilities.

Exempt them from the death penalty so to execute anyone.

That hasn't known an IQ of seventy would be in miscarriage of justice.

Now this is the second -- that -- come down -- the wire for Warren Lee hill last summer he was with two hour within two hours of being executed when his stay was issued this time -- He was just twenty minutes away.

-- it was a Supreme Court ruling some years ago that put this in the spotlight right.

It was it was a case -- Atkins V Virginia decided in 2002.

The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that it would be unconstitutional violation of the eighth amendment to protections against cruel and unusual punishment to put to death someone who was quote.

Mentally retarded.

It looks like at least for the night shift this may be off we're still trying to nail that -- get back to limit later on this hour on Robertson continuing coverage from Georgia.

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