Tennessee inmate asks court to declare he can't be executed TRAVIS LOLLER, Associated Press FacebookTwitterEmail FILE - This file photo provided by Tennessee Department of Correction shows Tennessee death row inmate Pervis Payne. Payne is asking a Memphis court to declare that he cannot be executed because he is intellectually disabled. The petition was filed in Criminal Court on Wednesday, May 12, 2021. (Tennessee Department of Correction via AP, File)AP NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee death row inmate's attorneys on Wednesday asked a court to declare that he cannot be executed because he is intellectually disabled. The petition was filed in Memphis Criminal Court one day after Gov. Bill Lee signed a bill making retroactive Tennessee's law that prohibits the execution of the intellectually disabled.