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Lifer
Okla. Governor Approves Executing Molesters
By TIM TALLEY, Associated Press Writer
2 hours ago
OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma on Friday became the fifth state to allow the death penalty for repeat child molesters, although legal scholars questioned the constitutionality of the new state law.
Similar statutes already are in place in Florida, Louisiana and Montana, and South Carolina's governor signed a similar law on Thursday.
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry didn't discuss the measure Friday as he signed it into law.
The law makes the death penalty an option for anyone convicted of a second or subsequent conviction for rape, sodomy or lewd molestation involving a child under 14.
Defense attorneys and death penalty experts said the measure defies recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have scaled back the death penalty's application.
Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, said the sex offender bills are a reaction to public outcry over the frequency and seriousness of sex offenses, and the attention they receive in the media.
No one convicted of a sex offense has been executed since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment 30 years ago, though one inmate is on death row in Louisiana following his 2003 conviction for raping an 8-year-old girl.
By TIM TALLEY, Associated Press Writer
2 hours ago
OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma on Friday became the fifth state to allow the death penalty for repeat child molesters, although legal scholars questioned the constitutionality of the new state law.
Similar statutes already are in place in Florida, Louisiana and Montana, and South Carolina's governor signed a similar law on Thursday.
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry didn't discuss the measure Friday as he signed it into law.
The law makes the death penalty an option for anyone convicted of a second or subsequent conviction for rape, sodomy or lewd molestation involving a child under 14.
Defense attorneys and death penalty experts said the measure defies recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have scaled back the death penalty's application.
Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, said the sex offender bills are a reaction to public outcry over the frequency and seriousness of sex offenses, and the attention they receive in the media.
No one convicted of a sex offense has been executed since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment 30 years ago, though one inmate is on death row in Louisiana following his 2003 conviction for raping an 8-year-old girl.
