'86 MURDER CASE Expert: Killer is mildly retarded

The hearing started late because Hill wasn't transported in time.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A Columbus clinical psychologist hired by the defense concluded that convicted murderer Danny Lee Hill is mildly retarded.
Dr. David Hammer gave his assessment Monday at a hearing in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court. The hearing is expected to last most of the week.
Visiting Judge Thomas Patrick Curran is presiding over the proceedings in which two other experts, one each selected by the prosecution and the judge, are to present their opinions on whether or not Hill is retarded. Each of the experts rendered his or her assessment after testing Hill.
Hill is on Ohio's death row after being convicted of the 1986 sexual assault and mutilation death of Raymond Fife, 13, of Warren.
His attorneys contend their client is mentally retarded and should therefore be spared the death penalty.
Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins and Atty. LuWayne Annos, an assistant Trumbull County prosecutor, selected Dr. Greg Olley, a psychologist from North Carolina, as their expert to evaluate Hill.
Judge Curran selected Dr. Nancy Huntsman of Austintown.
Constitutional issue
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that executing mentally retarded people constitutes cruel and unusual punishment and is unconstitutional.
"My opinion is that he falls within the high end of he mild mental retardation range," Dr. Hammer said.
Prosecutors have pointed in court documents to an IQ test Hill took in 2000, which concluded that he isn't mentally retarded. He scored a 71 on that 2000 test.
Although the U.S. Supreme Court didn't specify an IQ level for determining mental retardation, most states generally consider someone with an IQ of 70 or lower to be retarded.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati delayed Hill's appeal process in August 2002 pending a ruling from a state court on his mental capacity.
Monday's proceedings started a few hours later than scheduled because the state department of rehabilitation and correction didn't transport Hill from Mansfield Correctional Institution on time.
During the hearing, Hill is to be housed at the supermax prison in Youngstown.
Placement concerns
Atty. Greg Meyers of the state public defender's office said he is concerned that Hill was placed in a facility for people who have violated the rules of prison and are considered the "worst of the worst."
He asked the judge to order that Hill either be housed in the Trumbull County Jail or transported daily to and from Mansfield.
Judge Curran said he would relay Meyers' concerns to the sheriff's department.
"The court is reluctant to substitute its judgment for that of the sheriff," the judge said.
Hill's co-defendant, Tim Combs, who was 17 at the time of the murder, was sentenced to 46 years to life in prison. He wasn't eligible for the death penalty because he was a minor at the time.
Combs is housed at Mansfield Correctional Institution.
Curran is a retired judge sitting by special assignment of the state Supreme Court.