BREAKING UPDATE: A judge issued an order early Thursday denying the defense’s petition to review Ralph Menzies’ competency for the last time. Menzies is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on Sept. 5.
KSL’s original story is as follows:
SALT LAKE CITY — Although the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole said it would not conduct a competency inquiry during the commutation hearing for death row inmate Ralph Leroy Menzies, much of the testimony and questions during the hearing’s first day Wednesday focused on Menzies’ current diagnosis, his cognitive skills and how much he is aware of what’s going on around him.
Menzies, 67, is scheduled to be executed by firing squad early on the morning of Sept. 5. At stake is whether the board will change Menzies’ death sentence to life in prison witho