Overview

• The justices granted review on June 6, 2025, after Alabama appealed a lower court’s finding that Joseph Clifton Smith is intellectually disabled.
• Smith’s five IQ assessments yielded scores between 72 and 78, leading lower courts to apply the standard error range to evaluate his disability claim.
• In 2023, the Eleventh Circuit vacated Smith’s death sentence based on a holistic analysis that combined his IQ results with documented adaptive deficits.
• Alabama officials contend that consistent scores above 70 preclude a disability finding, a position backed by the Justice Department to ensure uniform capital punishment standards.
• The outcome could redefine Atkins v. Virginia precedent and set new guidelines for executing inmates with potential intellectual disabilities.