TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Mar 9, 2026

A judge in Memphis will hear arguments this week on whether death row inmate Tony Carruthers is mentally competent to be executed, the Nashville Banner reports. Attorneys with the Federal Public Defender’s Office argue Carruthers suffers from schizoaffective disorder and psychotic delusions that prevent him from rationally understanding why the state plans to execute him. A forensic psychiatrist retained by the defense is expected to testify that Carruthers’ delusional beliefs — including that a conspiracy of judges and attorneys framed him and that his release from prison is imminent — render him incompetent for execution. Experts for the state are expected to argue he is fit to be executed. If the court finds him competent, Carruthers’ execution is scheduled to take place on May 21 at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. Carruthers was sentenced to death in 1996 for the kidnapping and murders of three people in Shelby County.