Post #4
The death penalty is a controversial topic for two people of different viewpoints to discuss in a calm manner. The subject is close to heart and some people have very strong feelings about putting someone to death regardless if they committed a heinous crime or not. Now bring into the mix the idea of putting sex offenders to death and those two people may actually agree on something.
The government is trying to make convicted pedophiles eligible for the death penalty. Lt. Governor David Dewhurst declared at his January inauguration that he pledges to press for mandatory 25-year sentences and a two-strike death penalty provision for convicted child predators. Some argue that if a child offender knows if they get caught they will be given the death penalty they will do whatever they want to their victim because they know their sentence will be death anyways. Why not make the most of it? "If you give the same sentence for molesting a little girl as for molesting and killing a little girl, it seems an incentive to go ahead and kill her," said Michael Rushford, the head of the pro-death penalty Criminal Justice Legal Foundation in Sacramento, California, (Hylton).
In 1977 the Supreme Court ruled in Coker vs. Georgia that the death penalty in rape cases was cruel and unusual punishment. Nevertheless, several states have retained old laws providing the death penalty for rape of minors — including Florida, Montana and Louisiana, (Hylton). The states have claimed cruel and unusual punishment for rape, which may be considered one of the most horrible crimes to commit against another human being. What will make them change their minds for convicted child molesters and sex offenders? Senator Rodney Ellis stated that "at some point we have to decide where do we draw the line on something that's politically right but morally wrong, I'm for the death penalty, but I think it would be nice if we had a system where we got the right one,” (Hylton).
Mark Lunsford is a known advocate pressing for the death penalty of child sex crimes ever since his daughter, Jessica Lunsford, became victim to a sex crime. Jessica’s story pushed for the legislation to pass the Sex Offender Residential Law in which registered sex offenders have to stay a certain distance away from schools, daycares, parks, and other places where children reside daily. Mark acknowledged that "[he is] not a lawmaker, not a politician, but a citizen. It's okay, you know, to let them know … [that] if you want to hurt a child, you're going to get the death penalty," (ABC News). Some say that the death penalty would encourage the offenders to kill child victims because they would face the death penalty anyway. Other critics say the punishment does not fit the crime. Therefore, states have set forth an alternative 25+ sentencing provision for those who do not think the death penalty is the proper sentence for an offender.
Others argue for alternatives to sentences in prison. "There's a real need to think about treatment and alternatives for sex offenders rather than increase the punishment and the death penalty," said Jennifer Daskal of Human Rights Watch, (ABC News). Alternative punishment only works if one wants to make a change for the better. The offender may also put on a facade to get out of the program and be released into society in order to commit more sex crimes against the public.
In any case, the offender needs to be punished for their crimes against society. The state decides whether the mandatory sentence or death penalty match the case at hand. An offender needs to be aware of their consequences and deter away from the distractions around them. There needs to be more studying of the long-term affects to an offender successfully completing the rehabilitation program and followed closely there after to see if they do actually re-offend or are molded back into society.
ABC News. (2006). “Some Want Death Penalty for Repeat Molesters”.
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/LegalCenter/story?id=1767640&page=1&page=1
Hylton/Austin, Hilary. (2007). “Death Penalty for Child Molesters?” TIME.
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