Texas, a state that's famous for BBQ, re-electing Rick Perry to be Governor three times, and being a secessionist's wet-dream has stayed the execution for a possibly mentally ill prisoner.
The 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has stayed the execution of death row inmate Scott Panetti. Panetti's case has sparked over whether the state can execute a prisoner who is severely mentally ill. During his trial for the 1992 murders of his wife's mother and father, Panetti represented himself in court dressed in cowboy outfit and tried to subpoena Jesus. Panetti has suffered from schizophrenia for 30 years and has been hospitalized for mental illness multiple times throughout his adult life. Texas has a history of executing the mentally ill: former Texas Governor and 43rd President George W. Bush once declined to halt the execution of a mentally retarded man. He also opposed a legislative ban on executing the mentally unfit. Even though the stay is temporary, the state could still seek to execute Panetti.
