ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) A federal court jury in Albuquerque is hearing testimony about the thinking capacity of an Arizona prison inmate as it considers whether he should get a death sentence or life in prison. John McCluksey was convicted Oct. 7 of first-degree murder in the August 2010 carjacking killings of Linda and Gary Haas of Tecumseh, Okla. McCluskey has escaped from an Arizona prison.
The penalty phase of his trial began Monday and is expected to last up to six weeks. The Albuquerque Journal reports the jury has heard two days of testimony about what neuroimaging scans can show about brain damage. The defense is trying to show that McCluskey's could not have formed the required element of intent.
The prosecution has already rested its case.
