Death penalty switched to life in prison for Alabama man who killed 4 children

Lam Loung, 38, who born in Vietnam before moving to the United States as a teenager, was present in court when the new sentence was handed down.

A Bayou La Batre man who was given the death penalty after throwing his four children off a bridge in 2008 had his sentenced reduced Monday to life without a parole after two independent psychologists said that his IQ did not meet the state minimum to be executed.

Lam Luong, 38, who born in Vietnam before moving to the United States as a teenager, was present in court when the new sentence was handed down.

District Attorney Ashley Rich, who was visibly shaken while reading a press release at Government Plaza late Monday afternoon, said that "no one deserves the death penalty more" than Lam Luong.

"Our hands are tied," she added, while citing Supreme Court determinations and Alabama case law that prohibits executing a person with an IQ of lower than 70 points. To do so would be considered cruel and unusual punishment, as outlined in the 8th Amendment.

DA Rich said that no member of the legal profession that interacted with Luong during his initial trial in April 2009 believed he had learning issues. "None of these very experienced members of the bar specializing in criminal law ever had any indication that the defendant might be below average intelligence."

Attorneys for Luong hired a licensed psychologist and developmental neuropsychologist to determine their clients IQ, which had never been done at the initial trial. His IQ was measured at 57, said Rich. An independent licensed psychologist hired by the Alabama Attorney General's Office, which sought to appeal the test's findings, measured Luong's IQ even lower, at 51.

Luong will now spend the remainder of his life in prison. He has no opportunity for parole.

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