Mental Health Professionals, Religious Leaders Join Ricky Gray’s Plea for Clemency

Ricky Gray (pictured), who is scheduled to be executed on January 18, is seeking clemency from Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, and his clemency petition has been joined by a diverse group of mental health professionals and the Virginia Catholic Conference. A letter signed by more than 50 mental health professionals, including two former commissioners of the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, urges McAuliffe to commute Gray’s sentence because of Gray’s history of “horrific” childhood abuse and his addiction at the time of the crime. Gray’s jury never heard evidence that he was raped and sodomized almost daily from the ages of four to eleven, and that he turned to drugs as early as age 12 to numb the resulting trauma. At the time of his crime, he was under the influence of PCP. “In Mr. Gray’s case, his abuse and trauma were left unaddressed and predictably led to profound despair and other serious trauma symptoms, drug addiction, and the drug use that resulted in the tragic crimes he committed with Ray Dandridge,” the letter states. Gray’s lawyers seek to have Gray’s sentence commuted to life—the same sentence that Dandridge received. Gray’s clemency petition includes reports from mental health experts who say that the extreme childhood trauma Gray endured altered his brain development, making him particularly susceptible to the effects of drugs. Gray has apologized for his involvement in the crimes, saying, “Remorse is not a deep enough word for how I feel. I know my words can’t bring anything back, but I continuously feel horrible for the circumstances that I put them through. …There’s nothing I can do to make up for that. It’s never left my mind, because I understand exactly what I took from the world by looking at my two sisters. I’m reminded each time I talk and see them that this is what I took from the world.” Governors in other states have granted clemency in some cases with similar circumstances. In September 2011, Ohio Governor John Kasich commuted the death sentence imposed on Joseph Murphy, citing Murphy’s “brutally abusive upbringing.” In January 2012, Delaware Governor Jack Markell commuted Robert Gattis’ death sentence based on evidence of severe physical, emotional, and sexual abuse by family members. Both are now serving life sentences. Gray is also seeking a stay of execution from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit as he challenges the constitutionality of Virginia’s proposed lethal injection protocol. UPDATE: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit denied Gray’s request for a stay on January 13.

(F. Green, “Ricky Gray apologizes; more than 50 mental health experts urge clemency,” Richmond Times-Dispatch, January 11, 2017; K. Whitney Daniels, “Judge denies stay of execution for Ricky Javon Gray,” National Catholic Reporter, January 11, 2017; D. Hylton and J. Turner, “Ricky Gray: ‘I robbed Harveys of a lifetime of joy’,” News12, January 11, 2017.) See Mental Illness and Clemency.