Pima County Superior Court Judge Charles Sabalos overturned...

Pima County Superior Court Judge Charles Sabalos overturned Jose Amaya-Ruiz's death sentence, a Salvadoran convicted in the 1985 stabbing death of Kimberly McManus-Lopez, the 27-year-old pregnant wife of a ranch owner who employed Amaya-Ruiz as a stable hand. Judge Sabalos ruled that Amaya-Ruiz was mentally retarded, making him ineligible for the death penalty under state and federal law. The ruling comes after a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that executing mentally retarded people is cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment. In Arizona, a person is considered retarded if his IQ is 70 or below and he cannot live alone or care for himself. Amaya-Ruiz has been found to have an IQ of 53. He must now serve 25 years behind bars before becoming eligible for parole in 2010.