CHILD-KILLER CASE Hearing to decide about death sentence

Danny Lee Hill will undergo testing to find out if he is mentally retarded.
By PEGGY SINKOVICH
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A May 4 date has been set to determine if a killer's death sentence should be vacated.
The hearing for Danny Lee Hill was scheduled during a pretrial conference Monday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. Visiting Judge Thomas Patrick Curran is presiding.
The judge stated that Hill will be examined by at least two psychologists who will test him to determine if he is mentally retarded.
"It's just a matter now of finding a specialist in mental retardation that we can hire to do the testing," said Atty. Maridee Costanzo, who, along with Atty. Gregory W. Meyers, represents Hill. "It's not easy to find experts in this field."
Hill was convicted in 1986 of the sexual assault and mutilation killing of 13-year-old Raymond Fife. To get the death sentence vacated, Hill must prove he is mentally retarded.
Most recent test
Prosecutor Dennis Watkins and his assistant, LuWayne Annos, have stated in court motions that Hill was given an IQ test in 2000 and was found not to be retarded.
The prosecutors have said the U.S. Supreme Court didn't set an IQ level to determine whether defendants are legally retarded, but most states generally consider someone with an IQ of 70 or lower to be retarded.
Hill's score in 2000 put his IQ at 71.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati delayed Hill's appeal process in August pending a ruling from a state court on his mental capacity.
The appeals court ruling followed a June decision by the Supreme Court that it's unconstitutional to execute people who are mentally retarded.
Psychological exams from the 1980s show Hill's IQ ranged from 55 to 68, officials said.
sinkovich@vindy.com