Sonia Sotomayor Questions Lawyer's IQ Standards in Hamm v. Smith Case

Sotomayor Questions Petitioner's Argument

• 🎯 Justice Sotomayor expressed difficulty with the case, stating that the core issue is not what Alabama is doing, but rather the petitioner's failure to demonstrate that their proposed legal standard has been adopted by Alabama courts.
• ❓ She pressed the attorney to point to specific instances in the record or in Alabama case law where the argument about IQ score aggregation or a single perfect IQ score requirement was made.

Expert Testimony Discrepancy

• 💡 Sotomayor highlighted that the petitioner's own expert acknowledged valid IQ scores between 72 and 78 and relied on other indicators to determine intellectual disability.
• ⚖️ This expert's conclusion contrasted with the respondent's experts, whose findings were credited by the district court.

Legal Precedents and Alabama Law

• 📌 The discussion referenced the 11th Circuit's decision in a related case (Hall), which found Alabama courts erred by looking solely at three IQ scores without considering the standard error of measurement (SEM).
• 🔍 Sotomayor emphasized that Alabama courts, in practice, examine multiple scores and other factors to determine intellectual disability, aligning with precedents like Hall and Moore.
• ⚠️ She pointed out that in Hall, multiple scores between 71 and 80 were present, and in the current case, three scores between 72 and 75, plus one at 78, were considered.

Atkins Claim and IQ Thresholds

• 📈 The petitioner's attorney argued that Alabama law, as interpreted by Perkins, requires an IQ of 70 or below, implying this standard was met.
• 🚫 However, Sotomayor countered that there is no Alabama case where an offender with an IQ above 70 has won an Atkins claim, nor where courts have solely relied on the lowest score to establish intellectual deficits.