(AP) -- Georgia's top court has upheld the strict standard that capital defendants must meet to prove they are mentally disabled to avoid an execution.
The Georgia Supreme Court's 6-1 ruling on Monday rejected a challenge brought by Alphonso Stripling, who claimed the state cannot seek the death penalty against him for the 1988 killings of two because he is mentally disabled. The court also concluded that the burden of proof is on Stripling, not the state.
Georgia became the first state in the nation to ban executing mentally disabled inmates. But it also is the only state that requires defendants to prove they are mentally disabled beyond a reasonable doubt. That's the highest burden of proof in the legal system.
A federal appeals court is considering a similar challenge.
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