Utah killer with dementia is competent to face death penalty, judge rules

A Utah state judge ruled on Friday that Ralph Leroy Menzies, a convicted killer who developed dementia while on death row, is competent enough to be executed. Menzies, now 67, was found guilty and sentenced to death in 1988 for the heinous murder of Maurine Hunsaker, a 26-year-old mother of three.

Despite his cognitive decline, Judge Matthew Bates determined that Menzies “consistently and rationally understands” the circumstances surrounding his execution. Bates stated in his court order that Menzies has not demonstrated a significant fluctuation or decline in his comprehension of his crime and punishment, thereby not violating the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishments.

Menzies has chosen the firing squad as his method of execution, making him only the sixth U.S. prisoner to be executed in this manner since 1977. The Utah Attorney General’s Office is expected to file a death warrant soon.

Menzies’ defense team argued that his severe dementia impairs his ability to comprehend the reasons for his execution. They plan to appeal the judge’s ruling to the state Supreme Court. His attorney, Lindsey Layer, expressed deep concern over the decision to execute a wheelchair-bound and oxygen-dependent man with significant memory problems.

The U.S. Supreme Court has previously spared death row inmates with dementia from execution, citing a case in 2019 involving an Alabama man convicted of killing a police officer. Menzies’ attorneys have filed multiple appeals over the past 37 years, delaying his scheduled execution on several occasions.

Menzies abducted Hunsaker in 1986, just three days after being released on bail for an unrelated crime. Hunsaker’s body was later found strangled and with her throat cut in a picnic area in the Wasatch Mountains. Menzies was in possession of her wallet and other belongings when he was arrested on unrelated charges, leading to his conviction for first-degree murder.

Matt Hunsaker, Maurine’s son who was 10 years old at the time of her death, expressed relief that justice will finally be served. The family has been waiting for closure for over three decades.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.