Heck Van Tran v. State of Tennessee

This matter is before this court following the Petitioner Heck Van Tran’s motion to reopen his postconviction petition for the limited purpose of determining whether the Petitioner is mentally retarded and thus ineligible for the death penalty. The lower court entered an order denying relief. The Petitioner appeals asserting that the proof established by a preponderance of the evidence that the Petitioner is mentally retarded renders his sentence of death unconstitutional. After a review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the lower court’s denial of relief.