Richard J. Bonnie Practical guidelines of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) on mental retardation and capital punishment: application on the decision in the case of Atkins v. Virginia.

Abstract: The article contains practical guidelines for the state legislators on application of the decision of the Supreme Court of the USA in the case of Atkins v. Virginia (2002), which prohibits application of capital punishment to the mentally retarded criminals. These practical guidelines were prepared by Professor Richard J. Bonnie and approved by the Council of Law and Psychiatry of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which is a body responsible for the development of political principles and positions in the sphere of judicial psychiatry, in May 2003. The guidelines contain provisions on the legislative language related to the definition of mental retardation, procedures of its evaluation, qualification of experts.