Death Sentence and Conviction of Mentally Ill Tennessee Man Reversed
On March 7, 2008, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals reversed the conviction and death sentence of Richard Taylor. The court's ruling grants Taylor a new trial due to a variety of constitutional errors at his original trial. These errors include the denial of his constitutional right to counsel at a pre-trial competency hearing, the failure of the trial court to hold a competency hearing during the trial, and the failure of the trial court to appoint advisory counsel. Taylor, who is severely mentally ill, was permitted to represent himself at trial with little questioning of his competency. At his 2003 trial, Taylor represented himself without advisory counsel and presented no evidence towards his defense.

Cassandra Stubbs, a staff attorney with the ACLU’s North Carolina-based National Prison Project, stated, “The decision by the Court of Criminal Appeals rights the terrible injustice of a death sentence imposed against Richard Taylor, who faced his capital trial – while mentally ill, likely incompetent, and forcibly medicated – without the benefit of counsel. By recognizing the importance of Mr. Taylor’s right to counsel, including the right to standby counsel, the Court firmly established critical protections for mentally ill defendants who face capital charges.”