• Access The Justice’s Project’s database to find legislation on mental retardation, juveniles, moratorium and abolition in your state and contact your state representatives.
  
• Get in touch with groups in your state working to abolish the death penalty.
  

During the Supreme Court's current term, the court will hear the case of Christopher Simmons, who was arrested at age 17 for a murder in Missouri. In 2003, nine years after his conviction, Simmons' case was reviewed by the Missouri Supreme Court. The court determined that executions of people under the age of 18 violated the constitutional prohibition under the Eighth Amendment against cruel and unusual punishment under the "evolving standards of decency" test. Already, 31 states have outlawed executions of offenders who were under 18 at the time of the crime, and several others are considering similar legislation. Now the Supreme Court will consider whether it will allow this practice to continue in states that continue to permit the execution of child offenders.

In 2002, the Supreme Court ruled, in the case of Daryl Atkins, that executing offenders with mental retardation is unconstitutional. In a majority opinion written by Justice Stevens, the Court concluded that the practice of executing offenders with mental retardation "has become unusual, and it is fair to say that a national consensus has developed against it." Prior to this decision, many states enacted legislation prohibiting such executions, which weighed heavily in the court's decision to ban the practice. Now it is more important than ever to support legislation ending executions of child offenders.