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Texas court overturns death sentenceKiller's death sentenced thrown out a third time
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSAUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- A convicted killer whose case helped spark national debate over whether mentally impaired inmates should be executed had his death sentence overturned for the third time on Wednesday. A divided Texas Court of Criminal Appeals sent Johnny Paul Penry's case back to trial for the punishment phase. The court ruled that jurors in Penry's most recent trial may not have properly considered his claims of mental impairment. Penry has won two reversals from the U.S. Supreme Court that changed the way judges instruct juries in capital murder cases. The Supreme Court overturned his conviction in 1989 and, in 2001, overturned his sentence but left the conviction intact. Both times the high court reasoned the jury was not allowed to properly weigh Penry's claim he was mentally retarded. For the most recent trial, in July 2002, jurors heard detailed testimony about Penry's intellect. Defense experts noted his IQ consistently tested below 70, the retardation standard, and Penry remained very childlike in his abilities. Prosecutors aid Penry's lifelong anti-social behavior prevented him from properly taking an IQ test, adding that he had a life-or-death reason to act unintelligent. The jury determined Penry was not retarded and sentenced him to die. Penry was convicted of killing a woman in 1979. He gave a detailed confession hours after Pamela Moseley Carpenter, 22, described her attacker as she lay dying from a stab wound to the chest. Penry told police he broke into the woman's home, then raped, beat and stabbed her. Carpenter was the sister of former Washington Redskins kicker Mark Moseley. "I knew if I went over to the chick's house and raped her I would have to kill her," Penry told authorities. He also admitted casing out the block and making sure Carpenter's husband was away. Penry was on parole for rape when he was arrested and charged with killing Carpenter. Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 
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