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June 26, 2008
Supreme Court Rules: Child Rapists Can't Be Executed
Child rapists can't be executed, Supreme Court rules
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Wednesday that child rapists cannot be executed, concluding that capital punishment for crimes against individuals can be applied only to murderers.
The ruling stemmed from the case of Patrick Kennedy, who appealed the 2003 death sentence he received in Louisiana after being convicted of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in the majority opinion that execution in this case would violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment, citing "evolving standards of decency" in the United States.
Such standards, the justice wrote, forbid capital punishment for any crime against an individual other than murder.
"We conclude that, in determining whether the death penalty is excessive, there is a distinction between intentional first-degree murder on the one hand and nonhomicide crimes against individual persons, even including child rape, on the other," wrote Kennedy, who is not related to the convicted rapist.
Patrick Kennedy, 43, would have been the first convicted rapist in the United States since 1964 to be executed in a case in which the victim was not killed.
Kennedy was convicted of sexually assaulting his stepdaughter in her bed. The attack caused severe emotional trauma, internal injuries and bleeding to the child, requiring extensive surgery, Louisiana prosecutors said.
In the majority opinion, Anthony Kennedy acknowledged "the victim's fright, the sense of betrayal, and the nature of her injuries caused more prolonged physical and mental suffering than, say, a sudden killing by an unseen assassin."
But the justice -- supported by Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer -- wrote that when determining what punishment the Eighth Amendment prohibits, "evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society" must be taken into account.
Wild Thing's comment........
These justices who think raping a child should not be a capital offense are so horrible I cannot even fathom how their mind works. This is truly an abomination!
“The ruling stemmed from the case of Patrick Kennedy, who was sentenced to death in 2003 for raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter.”
He WAS sentenced to death and now they protect the rapist. Disgusting!
Posted by Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:47 AM
Comments
Here is the decision
Posted by: Jason at June 26, 2008 01:19 AM
But an unborn FETUS can be murdered in the womb times 50 million? And that poor little Florida girl was tortured & buried alive? So the Auschwitz Angel of Death - SS Doctor Mengele - was a monster, eh? I am so sick and heartbroken from the 'Cess Pool Mainstream America' that we reside in..... On a brighter side -
GERMANY 3 - Turkey 2! GO Fatherland!!
Posted by: darthcrUSAderworldtour07 at June 26, 2008 01:19 AM
Why can't they? It's been proven time and time again that they can't be rehabilitated and life in prison costs the taxpayers more money than executing them.
Why not turn they over to the victims families? Let the family do with them as they will? Let this person have to do penance for this heinous, horrible crime. No child should ever be injured in such a way--no one should ever touch a child there in that way.
There was a child rapist out this way who raped his step daughters, got them pregnant, blamed them, served time, got out, and raped and murdered a neighbor girl(only 12 at the time)--prison didn't teach him a thing--he could not be rehabilitated.
I think the supreme court is making very bad decisions. The liberals are getting their way and it's disgusting.
Posted by: Lynn at June 26, 2008 04:24 AM
Forty-four states prohibit the death penalty for this kind of crime; Bobby Jindal said Louisiana will look for a way to amend their Constitution to keep it legal. Montana, Texas, South Carolina and Oklahoma also permit it for child rape, and Georgia has some quirk in its laws which, so far, permit it even with the SCOTUS ruling.
Apparently, twelve other states were considering the system of execution for child rapists, but now can't do it.
I hope we see a broad resistance to The Court in this,and real efforts to LEGISLATE - over and over if necessary - to make an end run around it. Part of the reason we have a court like this is that legislators are a bunch of spineless pixies who won't fight for anything except pay increases.
If it doesns't change, start stocking up on rope.
(BTW, Malkin has a column on the Louisiana crime. If this guy doesn't deserve a slow execution, no one does.)
Posted by: Rhod at June 26, 2008 05:17 AM
OK...so this idiot judge wants the punishment to match the crime???? Let's take this Patrick Kennedy out and let him be raped exactly like he raped the little girl!!!!!!! And the size of the instrument should be in the exact same proportions to him as he was to her!!!! See how he likes being treated like an animal. Or maybe better yet, how would these judges feel if it was THEIR daughter that had been raped by this waste to humanity?!?!?! Suppose that would have any influence on their decision?? IDIOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I like the "rope" idea Rhod!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: John at June 26, 2008 07:24 AM
Posted by: Sierrahome at June 26, 2008 09:14 AM
Jason thank you so much.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:25 PM
Darth, exactly they don't mind killing an unborn but God forbid they put to death a child rapist. grrrrrrrr
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:27 PM
Lynn, your oright and the left hates to admit that ..."can't be rehabilitated". So with this decision we pay for there 3 meals a day, they live and the child has to deal with what happened for the rest of their lives.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:31 PM
Rhod thanks for the information about Bobby Jindal and also that Malkin has more information on this crime.
I hope there will be a lot of resistance about this decision.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:35 PM
John, AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:39 PM
Sierrahome, thank you for the link to the video.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 12:42 PM
Well one of the rulings, of the three ruled on today was the right to self-defense. Yesterday they ruled Child Molsetors would not get the death penalty, perhaps in some perverted way the court is saying that if we catch these sons of bitches, it's ok to shoot the lowlifes.
Posted by: Mark at June 26, 2008 12:56 PM
It is a shame that our criminal justice system has become literal where it seems that the only ones getting "justice" are the criminals. What we need is a victim's justice system.
States should have the constitutional right to define some crimes as so depraved and heinous that the perpetrators lose their right to exist. We don't torture criminals as punishment instead opting for various terms of incarceration with and without rehabilitation.
However, life imprisonment does not send the necessary message that there are lines not to be crossed in order to maintain and protect a democratic and law abiding society.
This brutal rape and torture of an 8-year old crossed that line. The fact that five justices of the Supreme Court can't make that distinction is disturbing. Even more so, is the fact that they don't recognize the constitutional right (and duty) for individual states to do so themselves.
Beware of candidates who will appoint or confirm judges who don't follow a constructionist view of the Constitution and legislate from the bench instead.
Posted by: Les at June 26, 2008 05:06 PM
Mark, I know just what you mean.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 11:18 PM
Les, I agree, picking Judges is such a huge thing for our country and this last week really showed how important it is.
Posted by: Wild Thing at June 26, 2008 11:20 PM
