Tennessee joins Florida in passing law to allow death penalty for child rapists

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Tennessee now joins Florida, becoming the second state in the country to pass a new law, giving prosecutors the option to seek the death penalty for convicted child rapists.

The legislation passed despite a Supreme Court ruling against the measure (Kennedy vs. Louisiana) in 2008 which declares the death penalty a violation of the 8th amendment of cruel and unusual punishment to sentence a person to death for a crime that did not involve a murder.

That new law goes into effect July, 1, 2024 but won't be carried out anytime soon because the governor's moratorium is still in place which puts a pause on state executions.

The death penalty has been on hold in Tennessee since 2022 after scrutiny over botched executions. It called into question how drug manufacturers and compound pharmacies were producing, shipping and storing lethal injection drugs.

A microscope was also put on the Tennessee Department of Corrections for reportedly not following proper protocols and procedures.

An overwhelming majority of state lawmakers and the governor believe the new law is justified and view the death penalty punishment as a deterrent to keep would-be criminals from committing reprehensible, heinous crimes, making sure these convicted criminals are punished for robbing children of their lives and their future.

There are fundamental political differences on the issue. Some democratic critics say the new law will only further traumatize child victims and leave them with unintended suffering and consequences by obligating them to participate in the lengthy appeals process if the convicted rapist is sentenced to death. They believe a life-in-prison sentence is a more suitable option for everyone.

Florida Criminal Defense Attorney Mark O'Mara also argues the cost to house an inmate for the duration of a life sentence is exponentially cheaper than housing a death row inmate.

When a similar law passed in Florida, O'Mara put rough estimates on the taxpayer expense. An average 40-year life sentence cost per inmate is roughly $20,000 a year or a lifetime cost of $800,000 per inmate. If an inmate is sentenced to death, that cost skyrockets to anywhere between $3M to $8M per inmate-- and in some cases tops out at $12M.

Senator Jack Johnson sponsored the bill and said the state is willing to appropriate the necessary funding to make sure victims receive justice and those convicted of such egregious crimes are sentenced to the punishment they deserve.

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