Indiana death row inmate’s attorneys ask Supreme Court to stay execution
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Attorneys for an Indiana death row inmate have asked the Indiana Supreme Court to stay his execution scheduled for Dec 18.
Joseph Corcoran’s attorneys argued in a filing submitted Friday that he is ineligible to be executed because he suffers from “severe mental illness,” specifically paranoid schizophrenia which they say has been “lifelong” and diagnosed by “numerous mental health professionals.”
Corcoran was convicted of murdering four people in Fort Wayne in 1997 and was sentenced to death in 1999. In October, his attorneys filed to reopen the appeal window for the death penalty.
His attorneys claim Corcoran’s schizophrenia is so severe it completely detaches Corcoran from reality, and he cannot distinguish between his delusions and real life.
“As he has for 20 years, (Corcoran) experiences auditory hallucinations, psychosis, and the ever-present delusions regarding the ultrasound machine he believes the prison guards are torturing him with.”
The court filing continues:
Mr. Corcoran’s paranoid schizophrenia completely removes him from reality. He cannot distinguish between reality and his delusions and hallucinations—his delusions are his reality. And because his reality is informed by his delusions and hallucinations, he is incapable of rational thought. Throughout his legal proceedings, he has been unable to assist counsel with his defense and has been unable to make rational decisions about his case. Indeed, currently, Mr. Corcoran wants to be executed, and is in fact eager for his execution, because he believes execution will relieve him from the pain of the ultrasound machine and sleep disorder.
Friday’s filing claims Corcoran “presents a colorable Ford claim,” which refers to the Florida Ford v. Wainwright case in 1974. Alvin Bernard Ford was sentenced to death for first degree murder. Ford’s mental condition worsened while waiting on death row, and the state declined to hear arguments about Ford’s competency.
Attorneys concluded their argument stating “a stay is warranted so that Mr. Corcoran may have the meaningful opportunity to present his Ford claim given that a colorable claim has been presented.”
A date for a hearing or ruling from the Supreme Court hasn’t been set.
Read the full court filing here:
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