Speaking in defense of the legislation, State Senator Jay Gumm commented:
"Predators with multiple convictions for child molestation have proven they will continue to prey on Oklahoma's children until they are stopped...The crime of child molestation ripples throughout the life of a child, robbing them of their innocence and sense of safety," he added. "We need to send the message as a state, that if you repeatedly prey on our children we will find you, prosecute you, convict you and execute you."The United States Supreme Court has previously ruled out the death penalty as an option in all but murder cases,
but the author of the Oklahoma bill said it is time to challenge that ruling.Dissenters claim:
"There's an incentive not to leave the victim alive," warned Colin Garrett, the Death Penalty Resource Counsel for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.This argument holds no water as the murder of the victim would equally qualify the offender for capital punishment.
Another concern is that the severity of the punishment will prevent some victims -- or their families -- from reporting the abuse because most children are molested by family members, he added.This may be true, but speaking as a parent, if a member of my family molested one of my children even once, I'd volunteer to pull the switch, and I suspect a fair number of people out there would agree with me. This law only applies to repeat offenders however, and I have a suspicion that suspect that some of these people end up being dealt with by family members already.
(Source: AP/Breitbart)
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