The tragic irony of Daryl Atkins

This terrifying piece about Daryl Atkins highlights the odd capriciousness of the death penalty. Atkins—the man in whose name the US Supreme Court abolished the death penalty for the mentally retarded, may get put to death anyway. Prosecutors suggest he’s not mentally retarded, and paradoxically his IQ scores do seem to have risen (most likely as a defense expert explains) because of his sustained exposure to the legal proceedings and repeated taking of IQ tests… A jury will soon decide.