South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has joined 19 other attorneys general in calling for the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider its 2008 decision in Kennedy v. Louisiana, which prohibits states from imposing the death penalty in cases of child rape where the victim survives.
The coalition sent a letter to the Department of Justice and the White House General Counsel, arguing that the Kennedy ruling was a mistake and that capital punishment should be permitted for what they describe as some of the most severe crimes against children.
“The Supreme Court got it wrong in 2008,” said Attorney General Wilson. “For too long, child predators have been shielded from the full weight of justice. Anyone who rapes a child commits one of the most monstrous crimes imaginable, and they should face the most severe punishment the law allows. South Carolina will never side with predators. We will always fight to put the safety of children above the interests of criminals, and we are standing with other states to restore this critical authority.”
According to the attorneys general, removing the option for capital punishment has limited states’ ability to punish or deter offenders who commit extreme sexual assaults against children. The letter contends that equating lifelong trauma experienced by victims with lesser offenses undermines state efforts to protect vulnerable citizens.
The group maintains that recent legislative actions by several states authorizing capital punishment for aggravated child rape demonstrate there is not a national consensus against such penalties and indicate ongoing attempts to draft statutes different from those invalidated by Kennedy.
They assert that under their reading, “the Eighth Amendment does not prohibit the death penalty for child rape” and urge recognition that it may be constitutionally appropriate in these cases as it is for murder.
A copy of their full letter can be accessed online.
