Background:

You are a juror in a death penalty case. The defendant in the case has already been found guilty of capital murder during the guilt phase of the trial. During the penalty phase, you have to determine whether the defendant is to be sentenced to death or to life imprisonment without possibility of parole (LWOP).

The judge has instructed you (and the rest of the jury) to consider the aggravating and mitigating circumstances of the case. If the aggravating circumstances outweigh the mitigating circumstances, you are expected to vote for death. However, if the mitigating circumstances outweigh the aggravating circumstances, you are expected to vote for LWOP.

The lone aggravating circumstance in the case is that the defendant committed the capital murder during the commission of a robbery. Though they are not aggravating circumstances, the defendant also has two prior convictions for robbery and one prior conviction for the sale of illegal drugs.

Question(s):

Under which of the following mitigating circumstances would you vote for LWOP or death in this case? Explain the reasons for your decision.

• The defendant is a female with children.
• The defendant acted under extreme duress or under the substantial domination of another person.
• The defendant was seriously abused, both mentally and physically, as a child.
• The capacity of the defendant to appreciate the criminality of his or her conduct to the requirements of law was substantially impaired.