In Louisiana a 41-year-old man sits on death row for the rape of a child. The Louisiana Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence amid cries that capital punishment for the crime of rape is cruel and unusual and goes against a 1977 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that found the death penalty for rape unconstitutional. However, in 1977 the Supreme Court wasn’t weighing the punishment for the rape of a child – that case involved the rape of an adult.
While rape in itself is a heinous crime, the U.S. Supreme Court found that the rape of an adult did not warrant the death penalty. Shortly they may have an opportunity to clarify their position, as the rape of a child is an entirely different circumstance.
In 2003 Patrick Kennedy was convicted of the brutal rape of an 8-year-old child while she was sorting Girl Scout cookies in the garage at her home. Kennedy was the girl’s stepfather, someone she should have been able to trust. He raped her and then bragged that he had made her a woman. The Louisiana court decided that the crime rose to the standard of aggravating circumstances and Kennedy was sentenced to die.
Had he been executed many people, including myself, would have felt justice had been served for his young victim. However, Kennedy is fighting for his life and his case may make it to the United States Supreme Court where a battle will be waged over exactly what the phrase “cruel and unusual” actually means.
“Cruel and usual” is one of those phrases often thrown around when people are trying to make a point about how unreasonable they feel something is. Much like the issue of free speech, it’s often misinterpreted and misunderstood.
To some people, the idea of putting a human being to death may seem cruel and unusual. However, in our society the death penalty is an acceptable punishment and has been found not to be cruel. In order to qualify as unusual, the court would have to single out one person or group of people and punish them specifically. This is not the case with the death penalty. While certain crimes warrant the death penalty, no specific race, gender or creed of people are specifically included or excluded from being sentenced to die. Therefore, while hard for some to stomach, the death penalty is not cruel or unusual punishment and courts are well within the bounds of the U.S. Constitution in ordering a prisoner to be put to death.
The death penalty has generally been reserved for people who have been convicted of murder. Society has generally accepted that the people convicted of the most brutal and horrifying murders should face the ultimate penalty and pay the price for their crimes with their lives. However, the public has not had an opportunity to digest that in some states, such as Louisiana, the courts have expanded the type of crime that they consider the worst of the worst to include child rapists and these people may also be put to death if convicted.
According to Law.com, Kennedy claims in his petition to the U.S. Supreme Court that his death sentence is not only cruel and unusual, but it is cruel and unique because he is currently the only person on death row for rape. Also unique about Kennedy’s sentence is that he had not previously been charged or convicted of the rape or sexual abuse of a child. In the other states that have laws allowing the death penalty for child rapists, the conviction must be at least the second conviction for the rape of a child to qualify for capital punishment.
Kennedy’s claim of being unique may not hold true for long. In Missouri, lawmakers say that a man with no previous sex crime convictions who is accused of kidnapping, raping, sodomizing, choking and assaulting a 7-year-old girl deserves to die if convicted of the crimes. In response to this case, legislation has been proposed that would allow the death penalty in Missouri for anyone convicted of the forcible rape of sodomy of a child under the age of 12.
In addition to Louisiana and the proposed legislation in Missouri, lawmakers in South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, Montana and Florida have already passed laws allowing death sentences for child rapists. Texas is also considering similar legislation. These legislators are attempting to send a clear message to pedophiles that child rape is just as serious a murder and will be punished accordingly.
Expanding the death penalty for crimes other than murder may have serious consequences. The judicial system is far from perfect and already innocent people die for crimes that they did not commit. By including child rape as a capital offense, we open the door for more wrongful convictions that could end in death. The door also opens for legislators to decide upon other crimes, in addition to child rape, that may be repulsive enough to society to warrant capital punishment. And for that reason alone, many people argue that we should stop death penalty legislation in its tracks immediately rather than risk potential legislative abuses in the future.
There is also the issue of our already crowded courts. Death penalty cases go through an exhaustive appeals process. If the time comes that child rapists are routinely sentenced to die, what effect might that have on the judicial process? Certainly our already overloaded system would buckle under the pressure.
None of these reasons are satisfactory excuses for child rapists not to be sentenced to death, but these are the hurdles that the supporters of these laws and pending legislation must face. Ultimately the U.S. Supreme Court will issue a decision as to whether or not Kennedy may be put to death in Louisiana for the rape of a child, and that decision will either pop the top on a can of worms or quiet the debate for the time being. We will just have to wait and see what surprises the Supreme Court justices have in store for us on this issue.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Stumble it!
17 responses so far ↓
1 Michelle // Apr 15, 2008 at 12:00 pm
Nice to see you posting again.
I struggle with the death penalty in general. While one part of me has no qualm with ‘extending’ it to child rapists, I struggle with the fact that it’s pretty difficult to bring a wrongfully convicted accused back to life.
In Nova Scotia, we had the case, perhaps some 20 years ago now, of a young teenager convicted of a murder he never committed. Although the argument “I went there to rob the guy, I never killed him” doesn’t exactly warm my heart, the fact is Donald Marshall would have been very dead for a crime he never committed. Our whole justice system is based on the idea that it’s better to let a guilty man go free than convict of innocent one. What about kill an innocent one? So, quite frankly, I just don’t know…
And yet, responding on a purely emotional level, when it comes to a child rapist, I would be very happy to do the job myself. Where is it written that I actually have to be consistent?
2 Gerri // Apr 15, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Michelle,
It’s about time I started posting again, huh? It’s been way too long.
I feel very much the same way that you do about the death penalty. I’m torn about it. On a regular day I might say that it’s not our decision as to who gets to live or die - however, on the subject of child rapists, I’m just like you. I’d like to kill them, then have someone shock the life back into them so I could kill them again. In some ways I think child rape is a worse crime than murder.
But then when I calm down and think rationally that innocent people could actually be put to death, I’m more against the death penalty again.
So yeah, inconsistent. That’s me too.
Thanks for coming by!!!
3 Jack Payne // Apr 24, 2008 at 12:23 am
I get a little tired with the “uniqueness” defense.
It is far too often used as a diversion defense.
Justification of the death penalty or not, this defense just doen’t fit.
4 BB // Apr 28, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Interesting post. I enjoyed finding your blog. Question for you?
In tribal or “primitive” societies (a relative term here) they have virtually no laws to standardize human behavior. There is also virtually no violent crime in any of these cultures.
My assumption has always been that there is little connection between law and behavior. What are your thoughts?
Thanks again for the thought provoking blog
5 Sharon // Aug 18, 2008 at 6:14 am
I hope the child rapist has to sentenced with death.This does not allow others to repeat the same stupid mistake.
6 SEO Consultant // Aug 23, 2008 at 12:00 am
“Is raping a child as heinous an act as taking a life? How should the comparative moral depravity of child rapists and murderers be measured? By what metric can the irrevocable harm murder inflicts on its victims be weighed against the long-term anguish inflicted on child rape victims? What is the judicial role in gauging the societal outrage and revulsion elicited by these two crimes, and in determining whether the death penalty is an appropriate response to those emotions?”
Rape of a child is moral outrage: he ruined someones childhood, this is an open wound for life.
7 TigerTom // Aug 28, 2008 at 8:57 pm
Paedophiles should just be put somewhere where they can _never_ again have access to children, or even pictures of them. For the rest of the lives.
Punishment enough, I’d say.
8 Lenore // Sep 4, 2008 at 3:22 am
Yes,they has to be punished.Not punished they has to be sentenced to the death as immediately as possible,and that should happen in front of everyone and not in a closed area.
9 Marc // Sep 7, 2008 at 1:36 am
It is def one of the most difficult issues out there and I cringe every time i hear about this case. that childs life was horribly changed forever. even the strongest among us cant overcome an event like that. crimes against children are the most horrible. people who commit them must have a massive flaw in their thinking.
and the appeals process is out of control, and are there any reforms in sight?
10 Geoff Dodd pi // Sep 27, 2008 at 6:43 am
Yes, that is basically a contentious issue. If child rape, then what about drug dealers of crystal meth? What about businessmen who steal people’s life savings, immune under limitation of corporate liability? This is an expanding zone! Geoff D.
11 Stacy // Sep 28, 2008 at 7:02 pm
People like this cause evil ripples in society because their victims are likely to end up doing the same things. So they should be removed from society or be killed, what better reason is there?
Unfortunately I do believe that cases like these have to proved well in court so innocent people arent punished, but the death row appeals process is clearly out of control. The amount of court time and tax dollars wasted for just one of these trials is ridiculous.
12 Chelsa // Oct 13, 2008 at 12:01 am
Child rapist has to be punished without any curtsy and with out any mercy. They have to be hanged straight in the public.
13 Eric Schechter // Dec 2, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Hey Gerri,
I really found your post interesting. I’m against the death penalty,because to be honest I think having them spend their life in jail is much more of a punishment…especially for child rapists. Child rapists are the most hated in jail and will usually get tortured by inmates (something they obviously deserve.) By putting them to death you are giving them a cop out and way out of their misery.
My two cents…
14 fitzgeralds // Dec 11, 2008 at 5:28 am
Thanks for the good read, I will definitely return for an update!
15 TotalAttorneys // Dec 22, 2008 at 6:02 pm
Excellent, thorough analysis of the issues on both sides of the debate over whether or not the death penalty should be extended to non-murder crimes against individuals (it’s already applied in the case of non-murder crimes such as treason). One significant issue I didn’t see mentioned is the importance of making a distinction between rape and murder in the law. If a child rapist (or anyone else committing crimes against a person) already faces the most serious penalty possible for the underlying crime, there is no incentive to leave the victim alive. In fact, pure common sense dictates that it makes more sense to kill the victim than to leave him/her alive–it doesn’t increase the possible punishment in the least, and it significantly decreases the risk of discovery.
16 mmo // Jan 2, 2009 at 6:35 am
Death is a harsh punishment but so is raping a little girl that can’t shake that for the rest of her life…bring back the death penalty…the innocent people are going to be few and far between as advances in science will allow the correct decisions to be made….all I know is if that was your Mom, sister, or daughter you would want him dead.
17 Jillian // Jan 19, 2009 at 6:59 am
The death penalty is not the good way to judge people. That doesn’t make any sense. Some time even innocents get punished because of wrong judgments. Proper counseling should be given to the convicts.
Leave a Comment