Friday, June 27, 2008
The death penalty for child rapists
The United States Supreme Court recently handed down a decision concerning the death penalty. In a 5-4 decision, they ruled that those convicted of child rape cannot receive the death penalty. The five justices said the imposition of the death penalty “for the rape of a child where the crime did not result, and was not intended to result, in the victim’s death” is prohibited in the US constitution which prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment”.
Does anyone really think that it is cruel to execute someone that brutally sodomizes a small child?
Maybe I’m just out of touch with the rest of civilized society, but I don’t have much sympathy for someone that would do something like that.
Personally, I’m against the death penalty. I don’t think it solves anything other then taking vengeance against those that commit crimes. I don’t think the government should be in the vengeance business, especially against its own citizens. With that said, I think that if you are going to have the death penalty, you might as well include those that rape children into the mix.
If one drug dealer kills another drug dealer, he could very well face the death penalty for his crime. Am I supposed to believe that his crime is somehow more heinous then someone who rapes a young child?
I don’t think so.
