I think that should be a rule: We should not execute people who have severe mental illnesses.
I’m only catching up, but this seems to be the case with Christa Pike, who was set to be executed today in Tennessee. It would have been the first time the state had executed a woman in more than 200 years, according to reports. The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals put a stay on the execution, with Pike’s lawyers arguing that her childhood trauma, abuse, and neglect weren’t taken into consideration.
I know this is not often a popular opinion, but I am opposed to the death penalty in the United States in 2026. I’m open to arguments that it can be a moral course of action in some circumstances. I don’t think those circumstances currently apply (although, I confess, most crimes against children strongly tempt me to make exceptions).
I’m not a fan of these last-minute stays — shouldn’t a better job have been done by our justice system on the front end? Every relevant aspect of the case should have been taken into consideration already. If Pike really is bipolar or otherwise mentally impaired because of childhood abuse, I think that would raise alarming questions about her capacity for culpability.