64 year-old John Errol Ferguson will face execution after a last ditch plea by counsel was shot dowh by the U.S. Supreme Court. Ferguson was found guilty of killing 8 people during robberies in the late ’70’s. His mental state has been brought into question in oder to squash the execution. For more info please click below.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday lifted a stay put in place over the weekend by a judge in Florida. Ferguson’s lawyers argued he is mentally ill and therefore the Constitution prohibits the state from executing him.
Ferguson was convicted of killing eight people in South Florida in 1977 and 1978, including a teenage couple.
Two of the three appeals court judges in Atlanta ruled that U.S. District Judge Daniel Hurley “abused” his discretion on Saturday when he issued a stay in the case.
Chris Handman, one of Ferguson’s lawyers, had said in an earlier statement before the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that he was disappointed a divided panel vacated the stay of execution.
