Wednesday, 16 Apr, 2008
Current Events
Court to Consider Death Penalty for Child Sexual Abuse
The Supreme Court is going to weigh the possibility of death penalty for child sexual crimes on Wednesday meeting.
In the US, there are only two cases when child rapists, who did not kill the victim, are on the death row for their crimes.
The court is considering whether executions for child sexual abuse that did not involve murder could be allowed by Constitution. Also the justices will have to decide on several unrelated cases.
Patrick Kennedy, a 43 year-old man who was accused of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter at their home in the New Orleans is awaiting the court ruling. His lawyer says that death penalty for child rape contradicts the Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment.
Several states rejected death penalty for child rape referring to the court's 1977 ruling that death penalty is an excessive punishment even for child sexual abuse without murder.
Organizations that work to prevent sexual abuse also supported the Kennedy's lawyer appeal, saying that death penalty can actually make the situation even worse. In most cases, children were sexually abused by a relative or family friend and knowing that saying about the rape can lead to execution may prevent them from reporting about the case.
In the last 44 years, death penalty was reserved for murders only. In 1977, execution for sexual assault of the adults was excluded. However, the execution for child rape remained unsolved.
In spite of the fact that Louisiana and four other states such as Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas allow executions for child sexual offenders, the death penalty has never been applied in any of the cases.
These states consider toughening penalties for child rapists and insist that death penalty is appropriate for such a severe crime as sexual abuse of the child.
Powered by www.infoniac.comComments:
- 0 votes
//23 Nov 13, 2009 04:51 PM | posted by:
trooper - let ur child be raped and and then give the perp 5 years. then tell me how u feel
- 0 votes
//22 Nov 05, 2009 09:01 AM | posted by:
gurk [InfoBIG]
- the only disadvantage of the death penalty is that no one can reverse it once miscarriage of justice is identified. even if the culprit deserves to be killed or even more, there should be room for correcting mistakes judges and jurors can make.
- 0 votes
//21 Oct 27, 2009 05:48 PM | posted by: Vita - I AGREE!! Castrate, castrate them!!!
- 1 votes
//20 Sep 05, 2009 02:22 PM | posted by: Patty - I could never set on a jury and give out the death penalty because of my personal believes.With that said if the State of Texas can give a person the dealth penalty for murder then the crime of rape of a child is just a serious crime if not more so. Some victims survive and live a well adjusted life and others never recover and continue the cycle of abuse.
- 1 votes
//19 Aug 02, 2009 08:27 AM | posted by: ] ; - well i was reading this for a report i am doing, and i think this is so stuped that they dont kill the people who have sexualy harasd a child.... by olny giving then a few years in prisen your just comiting a crime because when they get out they will do it again.... once a sexual retard will alway be a sexula retard ....so dont have sympathy to your child next rayper an choose the death penalty.... for you rayper.
- 2 votes
//18 Apr 30, 2009 05:18 PM | posted by: Keeler - Castrate them.
- 1 votes
//17 Apr 28, 2009 08:47 AM | posted by: jess-ka - Sexual abuse is down right WRONG. No one should ever have to go through the misery and pain emotionally and physically. To commit a crime like this is Evil. Taking someones life away because of your own issues shall lead with a death penalty or life sentence in jail they have NO right to live with us.
- 1 votes
//16 Apr 24, 2009 07:32 AM | posted by: y0-y0 BABi - dats just cruel i hate dat ppl harm poor n inisent childeren it jus aint rite YA HERD iT AINT RITE
- 1 votes
//15 Apr 17, 2009 05:44 AM | posted by: Tom - I personally disagree with the death penalty, no matter what the person has done. The cure for murder is more murder? The cure for rape is murder? What is going on here? An eye for an eye will leave the world blind. Wake up people. People do wrong, lock them up; don't murder them.
- 1 votes
//14 Feb 18, 2009 02:54 AM | posted by: TRUTH - FOR THIS TYPE OF CRIME " DEATH BY HANGING ", PUBLIC HANGING.
- 2 votes
//13 Feb 02, 2009 09:48 AM | posted by: AgainstDeathOfHumans - I do not believe in the raping of little children, of course, but i do not believe that it is our place to take a human life. What if the man who was convicted was your brother, or father? Then, it would be a totally different situation, wouldn't it? A lifetime in jail is acceptable, but no human being has the right to decide wheather a person should live or die. Put yourself in someone else's shoes before you judge them.
- 1 votes
//12 Jan 26, 2009 07:17 PM | posted by: Judith Parker - Sexual afenders deserve a life time in pain, and in prison, but I do not believe that humans should have a say in life or death. Sent to jail for the rest of his life. He will never know the pain he caused that little girl by exposing her to that environment.
- 3 votes
//11 Jan 15, 2009 02:55 AM | posted by: jessica - i believe that a child rapist should have the death penality as what gives a person the right to cruely take a inocent childs life from them. no one should live in fear, but how do you expect a child not to live in fear when there are sick minded people who are out there. i say kill them all!!!!
- 1 votes
//10 Nov 13, 2008 08:57 PM | posted by: sheree - i am all for the death penalty on a child abuser or child rapist. The person will and always does it again. They need to make the punishment alot harsher than what it is now. It's sick!!!!
- 1 votes
//9 Oct 22, 2008 04:15 PM | posted by: Aine - Anyone who thinks the death penalty inapropriate really ought to be gang raped. Too "severe"? I really don't think so. Seriously: Enjoy the trauma. Experience it! And then come back and tell me the death penalty's wrong.
Rape takes away a person's soul. The lucky ones might get it back after 7 years of hiding. Rape victims are "hurt" "beyond death" ... punish that, not that so-and-so was too chicken to finish the job. - 1 votes
//8 Oct 21, 2008 08:36 PM | posted by: DStarr - Even though I believe that the abusers were once victims themselves in many cases, I think that it takes someone that is not in there right mind to do something like take advantage of innocent children. I am a survivor of such a crime & would never ever in my worst nightmare imagine comiting such a repulsive act. Therefore I do believe in this case that they should be put out of their miserable existence. We should not pay our tax money to let them live, death will be punishment enough.
- 1 votes
//7 Oct 13, 2008 04:09 AM | posted by: Child - I am totally against the death penalty personally but in this case i have to disagree with the death penatly. Is it really fair that we take others lives in order to try and regain a life that has been ruined, doesnt this make us as bad as that person in the first place. And another persons death will not bring back or fix what happened, or heal the damage, it will just create damage for another family.
- 1 votes
//6 Oct 04, 2008 03:04 PM | posted by: abbadabba - I don't believe that the death penalty is appropriate for cases without murder involved.
Sexual abuse of a child is a serious crime - but I don't think it deserves the death penalty. Life in prison (without parole), sure.
Most child abuse, sexual or "normal" is commited by relatives of the child involved. I fail to see how giving the death penalty to the perpetrator will help - the child involved may even feel guiltier about their abuser being put to death. It's certainly not the victim's fault, but in this case I don't believe that the death penalty will help the victim - which should be the priority.
- 1 votes
//5 Aug 25, 2008 05:50 AM | posted by: parent - I feel like the death penalty should be the only option. when I think about what I would do as a parent if someone did this to my child It becomes pretty clear. In my mind if they did not recieve the death penalty or as really strenuous sentence I feel I would have to retaliate and then I would be in jail so lets just save the federal government some money and get rid of one instead of putting two in harms way
- 1 votes
//4 Apr 24, 2008 09:42 AM | posted by: Survivor - As I survivor I focus on the healing of victims. However, I also am aware of the statistics that indicate that as many as 90-90% of perpetrators were victims themselves. What I realize, after extensive research and personal work to heal, is that many of the individuals who perpetuate this crime are individuals who have not done the work to heal from their own victimization. The most important thing to remember, however, is that the sexual abuse of a child is a CHOICE. Anyone who has this traumatic crime committed against them is aware of the damage it does and owes it to society to process their trauma so that they don't use it as justification to perpetrate this crime on another child. We need to do more than punish them or put them in a system that fosters their thinking that they are justified in perpetuating the cycle. Am I a bleeding heart? No - I'm someone who works toward the healing of our world - not just America, but all children who experience this terrifying crime.
- 1 votes
//3 Apr 16, 2008 04:30 AM | posted by: Leah - What about the cruel and unusual punishment that the abused victim goes through. ITs time that the perverted freaks got the same treatment they have for years given to those helpless children children.
How can the death penalty make situation worse?
If the relatives, friends of the sex abuser rather hide and keep the secreat of abuse to them selves, because they are afraid the situation would get worse, it sounds to me as if they are putting the child that is beinng abused in a world of hate,abuse,nontrust, of their own, to have them to always have a mental problem of thinking low of them selves. - 1 votes
//2 Apr 16, 2008 03:40 AM | posted by:
alcotrazz [InfoBIG]
- i heard that such crimes in Russia are punished with 2, 3 or 4 years jail (i can't be sure though in these numbers, all i know is that they don't get REALLY punished)... i saw a documentary recently were they told about a chemistry teacher in a Russian school, who violated his pupils (usually 10-12 year old boys). After serving a few years he got out and started a small business organizing various tours and camping things for children. and he was actually leading the groups in those tours!!!! is THAT norma, i ask youl????
- 1 votes
//1 Apr 16, 2008 03:34 AM | posted by:
alcotrazz [InfoBIG]
- if you ask me, those monsters violating children should be slaughtered... or better put in jail for life, making that life a HELL... they don't deserve to live in a normal (or whatever we have here) society.
