A new Florida bill allowing capital punishment for those committing sexual battery on children under 12 cleared the state’s rules committee this week and is now heading to the full Senate.
Senate Bill 1342 (pdf), a bipartisan effort by Sen. Lauren Book (D-Fla.) and Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fla.), cleared the Florida Senate Rules Committee on Tuesday by unanimous vote, and the state House committee is scheduled on Thursday to consider its version of the measure—House Bill 1297 (pdf).
The proposal stipulates that defendants 18 or older could only be sentenced to death based on the recommendations of at least eight of 12 jurors. If fewer than eight jurors recommend the death penalty, defendants shall be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
It also requires the jury to prove, “beyond a reasonable doubt,” the existence of at least two aggravating factors to the crime, which must be voted unanimously.
Some politicians will get axed!! Or they’ll make exceptions or downgrade the charges for them. We all know that.
… Bunch of dopes think they’re better than us.
There are a number of issues as I see it:
First is the issue of allowing a ‘crime victim’ (such as Lauen Book) to become a legislator and then allowing that ‘victim/legislator’ to author laws intended to avenge for their own victimization. While this may satisfy that victim’s thirst for vengence, does it really serve the ends of justice? While there is nothing to prevent a victim from seeking and being elected to office, ethical conflicts of interests are obviously involved in pursuits such as this.
When examining the goals of justice, as articulated in federal statute 18 USC 3553 (a)(2),
questions arise when seeking the imposition of the death penalty. I understand that everyone will have their own views, but I question the following:
Does the death penalty in fact reflect the seriousness of THIS offense, or is it an overstatement and a pursuit of self-serving ends?
Does the death penalty in fact promote respect for the law, or quite the opposite?
Is the death penalty a “just punishment” for these offenses?
Does the death penalty in fact deter this type of crime, or ANY crime for that matter?
Does the death penalty deprive the defendant with any and all opportunity for “correctional treatment” or rehabilitation (obviously it does)?
Should the death penalty be imposed when only 8 of the 12 jurors vote in favor of death? In 24 states, the death penalty is an available option. Only 3 of these states DO NOT require a unanimous jury when determing the imposition of death. Alabama requires 10 of the 12 jurors to vote for death. Missouri and Indiana let a judge decide when there is a divided jury.
In addition it is the local D.A. who has the option of filing a charge in which death is an eligible punishment. They could choose to file a lesser charge which does not include the death penalty. As the D.A. is an elected official, will the D.A.’s seek the death penalty in all such cases? As they will be running for re-election at some point, it’s a given that their opponent will make it an issue should they choose NOT to seek death. So politics firmly come into play here.
Finally, 8th Amendment protections are under assault from the extreme political Right, and have been for quite some time. Extreme callousness and political goals, not so-subtly hidden within the grandstanding ‘tough on crime’ chest-thumping public speeches, erodes our ability to make judgments consistent with the pleadings for mercy and compassion found in most mainstream religions, such as the Christian bible (see James 2:13-16).
If Democrats had nerves, they would kick Lauren Book out of their party. Most members are opposed to the death penalty, more so when the offense doesn’t involve the killing of another person. It’s now part of the DNC platform to abolish the federal penalty. In recent years with 100s of people exonerated from death row for crimes they did not commit, the death penalty is going by the wayside in many states. Yet you have this Florida democrat who wants to ramp it up because of some personal vendetta over something that happened to her in the past. It’s not like she never recovered from it and became an outspoken state senator.
Hypocrisy and sheding blood of those who are trying to move on from past mistakes.
So, when they pass this measure of allowing the death penalty for sexual assault on minors will Matt Gaetz be the first to be tried?
I worry that the number of child rape/murders will go up in response to this bill’s passage.
It’s hard NOT to take all this personal, but one must understand that Florida is ramping up the crazy to make DeSantis look “tough on crime” when he runs for the WH.
This is the reason behind all this crazy $hit, to no one’s surprise..
They want to stamp-out and ban everything they deem “ungodly.”
They want to make Florida a safe-haven for ignorant, arrogant and selfish people
Oh, wait, it already is!
“….must prove beyond reasonable doubt…”
Ohio man wins $45 million in lawsuit after being wrongfully imprisoned for 20 years
The system doesn’t necessarily make it “A must.”
In a country where false positives are known to occur at a measurable and significant rate, the people have no righteous business contemplating a death penalties as the constitutional fair trial doctrines are not available to the innocent citizen OR even the very guilty citizen.
Given exoneration cases exist, this is proof enough the people’s prosecutor class does not necessarily need evidence to convince a jury to convict. Accusations and innuendo are enough in America to convict. Ask me how I know.
will never hold up, cruel and unusual punishment
I’m going to assume that the lawmakers don’t actually believe something like this would pass. (They likely know that the number of holes in the logical argument making the bill would be the equivalent of Swiss cheese.)
What they’re after is probably votes and cheap praises; that when people see them be “really mean to sex offenders”, people are going to want to re-elect them.
Same old story. What else is new.
And you know this woman looks eerily similar to Kyrsten Sinema. The traitorous one from Arizona. With dems like her, who needs republicans?
At what point is it that these ass mites are going to find out that war doesn’t end you start talking about death to people that have killed no one ,the outcome will cause senseless death regardless of the lame circle jurk they have to see what crule thing they can plan next and further steal with no mind of the danger this over bearing registry , want to kill us when onone was killed ,sound like war , sound like someonei s trying to start war , many truth came out during the native wars all these custer fans should take note abot those truths
Firstly, I am Jewish with a very traditional background. Lauren Book uses her Judaism and being a Jew to promote herself both politically and socially. She voraciously supports Israel and Holocaust memorial causes. I can vouch here that Lauren Book is a terrible Jew; it is strictly forbidden and frowned upon to seek death penalties in modern Judaism. The only person to have been executed in Israel by the state was Adolf Eichmann. Lauren Book is falling into the category of the hated Jew and anti-semitic trope used by the Nazis and Shakespeare ‘An eye for an eye.’ She is not at peace with herself; a deeply unhappy and tormented person. We should take satisfaction at that.
Ok, normally I can blow through a 1,500 word post in like 20 minutes tops. This one…hours in the making. The magnitude of the brainlessness and insanity overwhelmed me.
This will get more kids killed, here’s how…
Lack of legal understanding: People will assume that what they did, will qualify for Death, even if it didn’t. Once people assume that they are at risk of Death for what they have already done…nothing matters! You can only execute me once, so all other actions are freebies!
Sword of Damocles: No Statute of limitations means that a perp can be prosecuted at any point, up until the day they die. So even if they can be reasonably sure they can keep their victim silent for now…they have to be certain the victim will remain silent until the perp is dead…only one way to do that. (Look up “Sword of Damocles” if needed)
DA’s lie: DA’s are always going to push the situation to allow the Jury to chose Death, if they want. The DA is going to charge, “Sexual Battery” as often as they can…and always try to work in the “Aggravating circumstances” as often as possible.
Hateful Jury: The Pedo hating, Death Penalty loving Juries are going to jump on a chance to execute as many people as they can. Maybe not all, but it only takes 8.
No downsides: A perp, will always assume that if caught, they will be sentenced to death…so might as well avail themselves the freebie murder! You can only execute them once, and if you’re doing that for the SO, the murder is a freebie! You can add as many reasons you want on to the order of execution…it’s meaningless. Say it’s for the SO and the Murder if that makes you happy…changes nothing.
All upsides: Leaving the kid alive, only increases the likelihood of getting caught for the SO, which will always lead to Life without the possibility….or Death. Either way, the perp dies in prison, with no hope of getting out ever. So their life is on the line, the moment they lay a finger on the kid…might as well gamble big, and hope to win it all.
Infinity for the price of 1: You can only be executed once. So once a perp assumes they have that price to pay, and realizes there are no more penalties for anything they do…why not do whatever you want…so long as you don’t get caught?
The more, the better: Who gets the lethal injection?
A: Gangbanger that killed a couple of rival drug dealers in a drive-by?
B: Mobile Child Serial Rapist/Murder who spent years roaming around the country killing an unknown number of children, before they finally got caught?
Yep, in the US the more people you killed…and the more people you’re willing to admit to killing…the less likely you are to be executed for any of them. Even if you are executed…they can only do it once. Infinity for the price of 1.
This is not just Stupid…this is EVIL! This is going to dramatically increase the number of kids that get killed. In today’s world, only about 1-2% of SO victims are killed, with better than half being adult females.
This brainless act of vindictive idiocy is going to dramatically increase that percentage, and shift the majority to kids under 12….at least in FL. Once that happens, the brainless fecal Deamons that came up with this will demand that this is not getting enough people executed….so they will loosen the criteria to include more situations…which will get even more kids killed.
The fecal Deamons will ride these kids corpses like surfboards on a wave of blood, into long and successful careers. Every dead kid, another reason to vote of the people that *Keep kids safe”!
Only in America can we view total failure of this kind as proof of success! Like every single part of our criminal “Justice system”, the more this fails, the bigger it will get! The more kids it gets killed, the more permanent it becomes.
They will expand their fecal Desmon idiocy to such an extent, that any child in any situation is going to have a very good chance of having the SO they have to endure turn into a murder they won’t survive.
This will also manufactue serial killers like Florida is getting paid for that.
Add this to my list of many many reasons why I will never step foot in Floridah again.
This new bill won’t last no longer than her first marriage
The Florida legislature is so worried about this issue but it is a ruse to cover up the facts that many Florida residents are having the home owner’s insurance go up by as much as 250% because big insurance will no longer do business in Florida. Go ahead and keep doing the “Christian Right Agenda” and see how it works out for the citizens at large.
I’ve been a lifelong opponent of the death penalty, but I do recognize that, in cases of murder, there is a Christian justification for it, as it’s called for in Genesis 9:6, but it’s inconsistently applied (Paul, before his conversion, persecuted and likely murdered Christians and was not executed for it). Certainly the Catholic Church has long opposed it, as have many other denominations—in Michigan where I live, the death penalty was protested in the 19th century in downtown Detroit (near where Comerica Park stands today) by Methodists and other Christians, leading to its repeal. Faithful Christians can differ on the death penalty, especially as applied to murder. However, there is absolutely no Christian imperative for executing rapists, or treating “child rapists” any differently than other rapists, and the language being used to promote this bill—that child sexual abuse “destroys innocence” is patently anti-Christian, as one cannot be caused to be a sinner in Christian theology. There are notable Catholic saints who “resisted rape” and were martyred, but that was not because the act of rape would have caused them to bear mortal sin. Child rape is heinous, but it does not damage the soul of the child any more than beatings or gunshots, and there is absolutely no notion in Christianity of irredeemable men! Romans 13 does call for the state to be a force of justice, but to the extent that it can do so while preserving human rights should be the focus of any faithful Christian, and, as the Vatican has noted, we have, unlike the ancient Hebrews, a prison system. Supporting this bill is, IMHO, buying into 20th century non-Christian notions of identity, guilt, and psychology, a quasi-pagan notion that the soul of children is in their genitals and they are tainted and cursed by abuse, making their abusers “soul murderers.”
“Bill Seeking Death Penalty for Pedophiles”…first question I have is how are they are going to determine who all the pedophiles are (outside of those who have already been “found out”, or may be “loud and proud” about it). Also, while child abuse is obviously illegal (as it should be), is simply having a deviant sexuality (whether one acts upon it or not) going to become a “thought crime” that could potentially result in execution? Or, (most likely), is this just another case of “sex offender” and “pedophile” being used interchangeably, because the two terms are indistinguishable in the minds of most people. And finally…what, exactly, are they hoping to accomplish, (beyond Lauren Book just getting her whole “revenge fantasy”). If every “sex offender” in Floriduh were executed today, within a few years there would be just as many, if not more. Not only that, but as someone already mentioned, if people know the penalty for their crime is death, what would prevent them from killing either their victim, or themselves, rather than be caught? The reason that most of us “sex offenders” tolerate the steaming mountain of bs that we do, is the distant illusion of hope…let’s see what happens when even that is taken away.
What’s with those two geeks and the orange pants?
Half of the government would be dead….. If they were subjected to the laws they create. The poor will be the ones who are trapped by these laws that you need more evidence to convict a person of stealing a candy bar then a sex crime with a minor. Sex crime laws state they need…no date….no time…. not even a spec of evidence to convict someone. This is a sad day for the poor in American. If the system was constitutional and a man was innocence until proven guilty beyond a reasonable “DOUBT” this means that innocence until “PROVEN” guilty means that the burden of proof is always on the government to satisfy you that [defendant] is guilty of the crime with which [he/she] is charged beyond a reasonable doubt. Not in America you are guilty the second you are fingered. Florida u can go suck it!
If, Ms. Book was not sexually assaulted by her nanny, because her parents were never home to care anything about her, she would be working at McDonalds, graveyard shift.
Seriously? The death penalty for a BJ?
(Ad Hominem) Lauren Book is a brainless twerp! (whoo, that felt good!) — (The ad hominem exclamation, not the other thing … )
If it all about protecting the children, then everyone who kills a minor whether accidental or not, hurts a minor such as while drinking and driving, sells drugs to a minor, should be treated the same way….
I am just pointing out the hypocrisy. In reality, I am opposed to the death penalty because it does not prevent any crimes. If the person is that dangerous, just keep them locked up. I think the FL legislature should focus on laws that help prevent sexual abuse if the goal is to really protect children.