Melanie Sammons Anderson, 39, who was sentenced to...

Melanie Sammons Anderson, 39, who was sentenced to death in 1996 now has a life sentence after a judge ruled that she was mentally retarded. State law prohibits execution of people who are mentally retarded. Melanie Sammons Anderson, 39, has an IQ of about 67, just under the minimum of 70 required by law in capital cases, Judge William Z. Wood Jr. ruled Thursday in Wilkes County Superior Court. Anderson was convicted of 1st-degree murder and felony child abuse in 1996 in connection with the death of 2-year-old Tabitha Lynn Pierce. The girl died of brain injuries after she was shaken violently.