Death Penalty Considered For Paedophiles

by Rohan Parker

The Supreme Court is to deliberate again, after over thirty years, on the constitutionality of the death penalty being sentenced against a paedophile, after a new case in Louisiana in which a man has been convicted of raping his 8 year old stepdaughter.

This is becoming a divisive issue, and is groups such as social workers, defendants’ rights organizations, as well as state officials are all keeping tabs on how this will unfold. This is the first time since 1977 in which this has been considered by the Supreme Court, the last time being a case in which a 16 year old married woman was raped, though for the purposes of the hearing was referred to as an adult.

There is state backing for this legislation, as Missouri have already stated that they will incorporate the new law for the case in Louisiana. There are five states in the U.S. which do currently permit capital punishment for sex offenses against young children, however some social workers are saying that this will lead to fewer of these cases being reported, as the perpetrators of such crimes were often relatives or friends of the child.

There is currently a de facto moratorium on capital punishment in the U.S. at this stage, as Justices are deliberating on a dispute regarding lethal injection. The Supreme Court is to hear the case over the death penalty for child rape next Wednesday.

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Story link: Death Penalty Considered For Paedophiles

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