John E. Ferguson
John E. Ferguson, 65, was executed by lethal injection at Florida State Prison on August 5, 2013, according to the State of Florida and its Department of Corrections. His attorneys said he had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia for decades and argued that he was too mentally ill to rationally understand why he was being put to death. The US Supreme Court declined to take up a final appeal on that claim, and mental-health groups and the American Bar Association had urged the justices to address the competency standard.
Cause of death, as reported: Executed by the state. His lawyers argued he was too mentally ill to rationally understand why he was being put to death, and mental-health groups and the American Bar Association urged the justices to address the competency standard.
Reported by: State of Florida (the agency that held him); Florida Department of Corrections (the agency that held him); his lawyers; American Bar Association (advocates); mental-health groups (advocates).