Thread: Illegal Mexican murderer is not retarded rules judge

http://cbs4denver.com/local/rubi.nava.d ... 01096.html

Judge: Drag-Death Suspect Not Mentally Retarded
By P. Solomon Banda, AP Writer

CASTLE ROCK, Colo. (AP) ― A judge has ruled that a man accused of dragging his girlfriend to death is not mentally retarded, meaning he could get the death penalty if convicted.

The ruling was issued last month but wasn't made public until Friday. Defense lawyers said they would appeal.

Jose Luis Rubi-Nava, 38, is charged with murder and kidnapping in the death of Luz Maria Franco Fierros, 49.

Her mangled body was found in September 2006 near Castle Rock just south of Denver. She had a nylon strap around her neck and her body lay at the end of a 1 1/2-mile trail of blood.

The coroner said she died from strangulation and massive head wounds.

Colorado law doesn't allow the execution of mentally retarded people. The defense has said a test administered by two experts found Rubi-Nava's IQ was 66. Generally, those with an IQ of below 70 are considered mentally retarded.

Rubi-Nava, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, and a prosecution witness has testified that his test results were improperly compared with random samples from the United States, instead of from his home country.

The witness, psychologist Enrique Suarez of Coral Gables, Fla., said Rubi-Nava's unfamiliarity with American culture gave him an unrealistically low score.

A state mental health doctor also testified that Rubi-Nava is not mentally retarded.

Douglas County District Court Judge Paul King issued his ruling on the mental retardation issue on July 17 after 12 days of hearings held over five months. It was sealed until Friday, when King agreed to make it public after requests from The Associated Press.

In a court filing, defense attorneys Tamara Brady, Jay Grant and Andrew Heher called King's ruling "unprecedented."

"Mr. Rubi-Nava's intellectual functioning must be compared to the society or population where his conduct and behavior occurred," the attorneys wrote. "The utilization of foreign norms is a violation of Mr. Rubi-Nava's due process rights as they relate to his race."

Adriana Valdes, a spokeswoman with the Mexican Consulate, said they were monitoring the case. Mexico does not have the death penalty and is opposed to its citizens being put to death in the United States.

(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

I do not believe for a second that this illegal invader murderer is mentally retarded. The judge has sense and this man should be put to death. How many mentally retarded people have the mental capacity to put a nylon around someone's neck and attach it to a car and then drive off!! Give me a break. You really need to do some planning to carry that out. It doesn't add up one bit.

Book him Danno ... send him down to Florida .... We'll give him some Hooked on Phonics classes while we warm up Ole "Sparky"

If he's considered retarded, then there are 39 million more just like him living illegally in the USA. What he did was something he planned to do. REAL mentally retarded people just don't have enough of it upstairs to do what he did. I worked with the developmentally disabled for over 20 years. This isn't the type of behavior exhibited by the developmentally disabled. This monster may be a social deviant, along the lines of Ted Bundy or Jeffrey Dahmer, but that doesn't make him retarded.