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| State Agency Disputes Inmate's Mentally Retarded Diagnosis |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 12/23/2002 |
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A South Carolina state agency says it shouldn't have to treat an inmate who was released after serving 15 years for manslaughter because he isn't mentally retarded. The assessment of James E. Thurmond by the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs disagrees with an earlier court finding and IQ tests cited by his lawyers that say the 44-year-old North Augusta man has a mental age of 6 years, 10 months. Circuit Court Judge Henry Floyd ordered the department to keep Thurmond until a probate judge determines his mental status. Thurmond pleaded guilty but mentally ill to manslaughter in the 1987 death of John Henry Scurry, 33, who was hit several times in the head with an ax while sleeping in his North Augusta home, court papers show. Although sentenced to 20 years, Thurmond was released after about 15 years and was taken Saturday to Whitten Center, the disabilities department's 370-patient regional center in Laurens County. That department wants the state Mental Health Department to care for Thurmond because of his 'long history of incarceration and hospitalizations for multiple psychiatric conditions.' Thurmond 'creates significant potential harm to the developmentally disabled individuals who reside and receive care and treatment' at Whitten, the disabilities department said in court papers. The department doesn't operate 'prisons or secured facilities and does not have jurisdiction for mental retardation services or treatment in these settings,' department spokesman Kathy Newman said Wednesday. In August 2001, Circuit Court Judge Henry McKellar ruled that Thurmond was mentally retarded and unfit for trial in an attempted sexual assault of a prison social worker, court papers show. McKellar ordered the disabilities department to care for Thurmond after he got out of prison, until a probate judge determined where he would go. Tests show Thurmond has an IQ ranging from 41 to 64, his lawyers said in court papers. Of the 12 professionals who examined Thurmond in the last 15 years, only two - both with the disabilities department - disputed Thurmond's retardation, according to court papers. |
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It would be nice to see how this story has changed over the years. I enjoyed reading more about our prison system on this website. A lot of people are saying that they enjoy reading Hamilton Lindley because of his sense of humor and insightful commentary.