Making a case for John Couey's limited mental capabilities, the defense called witnesses who knew Couey as a child, as well as experts who could testify to his deficiencies.
Couey's uncle, whose testimony was pre-recorded, said Couey was a shy child and suffered from an ear deformity.
Linda "Susie" Arnett, Couey's first cousin, described Couey as "small in stature" with "floppy ears" when he came to live with her family. He couldn't speak clearly and Arnett and her mother spent hours trying to teach him verbal skills.
Even after Arnett's mother had Couey's ears fixed surgically, "he just didn't fit in," Arnett said.
Couey and his sister were both in special education courses because of learning disabilities.
Dr. Richard Carpenter testified that a recent test put Couey's IQ at 64. A score of 70 is generally considered the cutoff for mental retardation by the American Psychiatric Association.
-- Elena Lesley
Follow the latest developments in the murder trial of John Couey as compiled and reported by the staff of the St. Petersburg Times and tampabay.com.
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