Indiana death row inmate Joseph Corcoran is scheduled to be executed before sunrise on Wednesday, December 18, 2024, at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City. (Allen County court photo; Indiana Department of Correction and public records mugshots; headshot by Andy Barrand/KPC News. Photo illustration by Casey Smith/Indiana Capital Chronicle)
The U.S. Court of Appeals late Monday rejected a request to stay the execution of Indiana death row inmate Joseph Corcoran, which is scheduled to take place before sunrise Wednesday.
The 2-1 decision follows a series of other refusals to delay Corcoran's execution, despite repeated attempts by the inmate's lawyers.
Although lawyers argued that he should be spared because of his “persistent” mental illness, the Indiana Supreme Court affirmed the sentence, as several state and federal courts have done. The state's chief justices recently rejected additional attempts by defense attorneys to delay the execution and allow an assessment of Corcoran's competency. Federal appeals after the conviction were also unsuccessful.
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“Corcoran has submitted a detailed, sworn, notarized affidavit clearly stating his desire not to seek federal assistance,” federal judges Michael B. Brennan and Thomas L. Kirsch II wrote in their opinion a letter Corcoran sent to the Supreme Court in Novemberin which he said he had “no desire and no wish[es] to initiate further appeals or litigation of any kind.” Using his “own free will” and “without coercion or promise,” he asked the judges to withdraw his lawyer’s motions.
“His compilation and filing of this affidavit undermines the assertion that he is incompetent to pursue a habeas petition,” the federal judges continued in their opinion on Monday. “We seriously question whether Corcoran's wife and his attorneys have demonstrated his incompetence to litigate on his own. If not, next boyfriend status is not appropriate for him.”
Brennan and Kirsch further emphasized that Corcoran was found competent in 2004, “and he has never been declared incompetent.”
“The record shows no evidence that Corcoran's mental competency has deteriorated since the earlier competency determination,” the justices said. “There is also no recent assessment that Corcoran does not understand the reasons for his execution. In fact, Corcoran's affidavit attests to his understanding of his execution and the reasons for it. The regional court did not make any inappropriate factual findings.”
However, Justice John Z. Lee disagreed with his colleagues.
He said in his dissent: “In support of its belief that Corcoran is competent to be executed and that nothing has changed, the Indiana Supreme Court placed considerable emphasis on the statements Corcoran made in his November 21, 2024 affidavit. “
Lee said the Indiana Supreme Court did not give Corcoran's defense attorney adequate opportunity to respond to that letter before issuing a statement.
“The Indiana Supreme Court's reliance on Corcoran's untested affidavit is particularly troubling because defense counsel's entire theory is based on Corcoran's inability to rationally understand the reasons for his execution and his efforts to conceal his true motivations for the death penalty ” wrote Lee.
He also pointed out that given Corcoran's “long, undisputed serious mental illness and the widespread delusions evidenced by his book and recent medical records,” the convict “has the right to have his actions judged by at least one court.” . Competency to be carried out.”
Corcoran's legal team requested a rehearing before the full 7th Circuit Court of Appeals early Tuesday morning.
Unless the courts intervene, Corcoran's fate remains in the hands of Gov. Eric Holcomb – who has repeatedly said he supports the death penalty when it is “appropriate.”
The Republican governor told the Indiana Capital Chronicle last week that he believes Corcoran is mentally ill, but that “the courts have spoken of his ability to stand, carry out the sentence and carry out the sentence.” Holcomb, however, made it clear that he was awaiting the conclusion of the trial before he take action.
He said he planned to be at the governor's mansion on the night of the execution and have “direct” communications access to the state prison.
Corcoran, who has been on death row since 1999, has long resisted the possibility of appealing his case, which could potentially overturn his death sentence.
He was 22 when he killed his brother James Corcoran, 30; Robert Scott Turner, 32; Douglas A. Stillwell, 30; and Timothy G. Bricker, 30, on July 26, 1997. He committed the murders in the home he shared with his brother and a sister.
His mental health has been part of the decades-old process since the beginning of the case. State and federal defense attorneys say he continues to suffer from paranoid schizophrenia, which causes him to experience “persistent hallucinations and delusions.”
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