Alabama's Supreme Court voted 5-4 to overturn the death sentence of a Birmingham man convicted in a 2009 robbery and shooting. The high court is directing a Jefferson County judge to sentence Anthony Lane to life without possibility of parole. The ruling came after the U.S. Supreme Court had ordered Alabama's courts to reconsider the death sentence in 2015. The Justices cited cases that say states can't execute people with mental disabilities. However, even after that, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals had reaffirmed that Lane should get the death penalty. The Alabama attorney general's office conceded in the case that the trial court shouldn't have sentenced Lane to death, filing a joint motion with the defense. Lane confessed that he killed Frank Wright at a car wash, stole his wallet and car, and then partially burned the car in an attempt to conceal evidence. Wright's wallet was found in the car. Alabama’s Supreme Court agreed that Lane has an IQ of 70 and his intellectual capacity is sub average.
Alabama killer avoids death penalty over mental issues...
