Understanding persons with intellectual disabilities in the criminal justice system: indicators of progress?
نویسنده
چکیده
In 1980, something happened in my town that drew me into our criminal justice system as never before. On October 14, in Darien, Connecticut, Jimmy Hafner, age 13, was strangled with his own belt. He was last seen standing on the sidelines of an after-school soccer game. His friend, the goalie, recalled him being there. ''Jimmy was ragging me,'' he said. ''He just kept kidding me. You, know, it was all in fun.'' The goalie also said that Jimmy was standing with a neatly dressed man with blond hair. He saw them conversing with each other. He figured that the man was either a coach or a college student. The next morning Hafner's body was found in the woods next to the soccer field. The man who was standing with him never came forward. His identity remains a mystery today. Three days later at 7:30 p.m., a detective went to the home of 20-year-old Andy Burge. He asked Burge to come to the station and help him solve a crime. Burge jumped at the chance to help. For years, he had talked about wanting to be a policeman. His parents seemed to be a bit surprised by the detective's request , but they let him go. After midnight, Burge had signed ''an admission'' that he murdered Haf-ner. He told his dad later, ''You'll be proud of me. I helped them solve the case.'' At trial, three veteran officers presented Burge's signed admission as the keystone of their case. According to them, Burge ''told them things that only the perpetrator could know.'' They admitted that no stenographic or electronic record was taken of three interrogations—except for a tape-recording of the last 10 minutes of the first session. Officers initially claimed that the recorder malfunctioned. Later they said they failed to turn it on. The prosecution emphasized that no man would ever sign a confession for a crime that he did not commit. Defense experts described Burge as a young man with severe intellectual disabilities. Brain damage left him with uncoordinated movements, speech impediments, and a short attention span. He usually spoke in three-word sentences. They testified that Burge's slight, 5Ј7Љ 140-pound build, and his physical disabilities rendered him unable to engage in a ''scuffling'' that killed Hafner. According to defense experts, Burge possessed a rich fantasy life that ''ranged from being a rock star to a sleuth who solved crimes.'' Consequently, …
منابع مشابه
Running head: ID AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE 1 Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities and Considerations for the Criminal Justice System
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عنوان ژورنال:
- Mental retardation
دوره 42 6 شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 2004