Chief Justice Roberts Questions IQ Test Focus in Hamm v. Smith Oral Arguments

Focus on IQ Test Scores

• ⚖️ Chief Justice John Roberts questioned the Petitioner attorney's argument in Hamm v. Smith, suggesting it might be perceived as too focused on IQ test score results.
• 🎯 Roberts presented a hypothetical scenario with scores like 69, 68, 69, 69, and 75, asking if a score of 75 would still lead to arguments for considering other factors.

Legal Arguments and Burden of Proof

• 💡 The Petitioner attorney argued that the burden remains on the offender to prove their IQ is 70 or below, and that they must present a method for assessing scores.
• ❌ It was stated that the claim fails if the offender does not provide a method for assessing the scores, as Smith allegedly did not.

Probitative Weight of Scores

• 📈 An argument was made that the highest score should receive more probative weight.
• ⚠️ This is because IQ tests can underestimate a person's IQ if they are distracted, fatigued, ill, or due to an incentive to avoid the death penalty.

Countering the "Results-Oriented" Perception

• 🧐 Roberts noted that averaging scores and discounting those below 70, while not doing so for scores all below 70, could be seen as results-oriented.
• 🔬 The attorney countered that this approach is not results-oriented but has a scientific warrant behind it, aiming to measure intellectual performance capacity.