La. Child Rapist's Death Sentence Upheld

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

La. Child Rapist's Death Sentence Upheld
La. Court Upholds Child Rapist's Death Sentence;
Case Could Become Test for Supreme Court

By KEVIN McGILL Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS May 23, 2007 (AP)

Louisiana's Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a man may be executed
for raping an 8-year-old girl, and lawyers say his case may become
the test for whether the nation's highest court upholds the death
penalty for someone who rapes a child.

Both sides say the sentence for Patrick Kennedy, 42, could expand a
1977 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that held the death penalty for rape
violated the Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual
punishment. The high court said then that its ruling applied only to
adult victims.

Attorney Jelpi Picou, director of the New Orleans-based Capital
Appeals Project, said he will ask the Louisiana Supreme Court for a
rehearing and, if rejected, will go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

-snip-

Louisiana law allows the death penalty for the aggravated rape of
someone less than 12 years old.

-snip-

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=3202894

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

1. Oh, so the USA is in an even shorter list!

Those who execute for non-homicide crimes?

How many are on THAT list? China, Saudi Arabia... who else?

[lepus]

2. I have an 8 year old little girl

Deepest pit of hell for this man. SCOTUS has already upheld a death penalty case for a rapist in CA. This one got caught up in the lindburgh laws though.