Stop the Execution of People With Intellectual Disabilities

Prevent the execution of Pervis Payne and others living with intellectual disabilities in Tennessee

In Tennessee, lawmakers are voting on SB1349/HB1062, legislation that will modernize Tennessee’s intellectual disability law and prevent the execution of people living with intellectual disabilities like Pervis Payne.

Mr. Payne has an intellectual disability and a strong innocence claim, but has been on death row in Tennessee for 33 years. Despite having no prior criminal record, he was set to be executed in December 2020, but was given a temporary reprieve that expired on April 9, 2021.

Both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Tennessee Supreme Court have ruled against executing people with intellectual disabilities. And the court has not disputed Mr. Payne’s intellectual disability. But no mechanism currently exists to allow him to bring his claim to state court because he has already been sentenced to the death penalty and his conviction is final. SB1349/HB1062 would change that and help prevent wrongful executions.

Please help pass SB1349/HB1062 by calling your lawmaker today: 629-213-4832.