No matter what your position on capital punishment, think for a moment about the barbarity of sending to her/his execution someone without sufficient mental capacity to grasp the fact of her/his imminent demise. Now, some glad tidings in this regard: Va. Moves To Limit Executions — ‘The Virginia Senate voted unanimously today to bar the execution of mentally retarded people convicted of capital crimes, a highly unusual step for a state legislature that since the 1970s has consistently expanded the reach of the death penalty.

By shielding a mentally retarded person, Virginia would join 18 states, including Maryland, that bar such executions.’ Washington Post