Bill > HB1432

This bill establishes a new procedure for determining if a defendant facing a death sentence has an intellectual disability, aiming to ensure such individuals are not executed. If the state seeks the death penalty, the court will appoint two or three qualified professionals, including at least one psychiatrist and one psychologist with expertise in intellectual disabilities, to examine the defendant. These experts will then provide written evaluations assessing the defendant's intellectual functioning, adaptive behavior, and whether these conditions existed before the age of twenty-two. The defendant has thirty days after receiving these evaluations to file a petition claiming an intellectual disability; if they do not, the evaluations are inadmissible in court. If a petition is filed, the evaluators will testify at a hearing where the defendant must prove their intellectual disability by clear and convincing evidence, and the court will make a determination before the trial begins.

Justice

https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2026/bills/house/1432/details