DeSantis proposes death penalty for certain sex crimes
As part of Governor Ron DeSantis’ tough-on-crime agenda that he is proposing to the Florida Legislature, he is recommending the death penalty for certain types of sex crimes, specifically for rape of a child. The rape of a child is among the most heinous of all crimes.
The Tampa Bay Times stated that DeSantis wants the death penalty for “certain types of sex crimes.” Which other types of sex crimes is DeSantis referring to?
About ten years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice modified the definition of the word rape: An Updated Definition of Rape | OPA | Department of Justice.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, DeSantis has also said that “a supermajority vote by a jury should be sufficient to impose the death penalty. That would make Florida the second state to allow nonunanimous jury votes for the death penalty, in addition to Alabama.”
This past week, DeSantis raised the idea of changing state law so that only eight out of twelve jurors would be needed to vote in favor of the death penalty.
DeSantis is proposing that the Florida Legislature consider bills that would (1) require the death penalty for certain sex crimes and (2) would NOT require a unanimous jury vote to impose the death penalty.
He didn’t get it from AL, but his time as a navy JAG where in the UCMJ, unless it is a capital case, e.g., murder, only 75% today (used to be 67%) of the votes are needed to convict. It has always been less than unanimous in the UCMJ. AL just got on board with it.
I was never a believer in the death penalty. I find it vengeful rather than punitive Or a deterrent. I’d fear that if this becomes law then it is only a matter of time before someone expands the crimes punishable by death to include all sex crimes.
The statutory ‘rape’ of a 17 yr old, by a 19 yr old, is the ‘rape of a child’.
This is nothing more than grandstanding on the national stage for the coverage and polishing his conservative credentials.
I have no personal issue with the death penalty for capital murder but it is not worth the cost. It does not deter crime at all any more than gun laws keep guns out the the hands f criminals. Sentence someone to live in prison without possibility of parole and any appeal filed is at the cost of the inmate. Sentence that same person to death and the State gets the pleasure of paying for appeals. On average it costs around $1M more for a death row inmate than one in prison for life.
In Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 407 (2008), the United States Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment for the rape of a child where the offender had no intent to kill the victim. DeSantis has a law degree from an Ivy League university so he is surely aware of this, which means that he is advocating for a law he knows is unconstitutional. Didn’t he take an oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution? How can you preserve the Constitution when you are advocating for a law that you know violates it?
DeSantis says he knows this and would like to return this issue to SCOTUS.
I just want to draw attention to scams. Apparently this one is a little more complex. Also add QR codes to the items that should be red flags when a person calls with a “warrant”
https://www.appenmedia.com/public_safety/phone-scammer-targets-registered-sex-offender/article_4bd029b8-a3fb-11ed-9142-af0b9eb3d86f.html
I should also have pointed out that sexual battery against a child under 12 is already a capital felony in Florida per F.S. sec. 794.011(2)(a), with the only possible punishments on the books being death or life without parole. So, what change is DeSantis actually proposing? Doesn’t he already know that the rape of a child is a capital offense in Florida? His so-called proposal is already the law in Florida.
Imbeciles, they should be focused on the Violent crime epidemic, the hatred towards one another in this country and the mental fragility of people that leads them to shoot up schools and at every other possibly venue.
Of course those are REAL PROBLEMS, so these political Imbeciles don’t have the interest on solving real problems.
We have to understand here that DeSantis has a child like mentally. This is clearly evidenced by his ongoing battle with Disney. If he doesn’t get his way or is embarrassed publicly he behaves like a spoiled brat! He has a my way or highway attitude!
[moderated]