Supreme Court Rules on Child Rapists Case

As a parent, I understand Senator Obama’s stand on this issue comes from the heart. I think that most parents would want to kill any man that would harm a child in such a way and relieve the court and the legal system of that duty. For that very reason I lean toward agreeing with Senator Obama that the Supreme Court may have made an error in judgment in this case.

Supporters of the courts ruling say that if the law was in place that the victim might stand a higher chance of being killed after the crime or the victim might not be so willing to report the crime. I say that now the criminal stands a higher chance of being killed by a parent or angry mob rather then having the crime reported. This could result in people taking the law into their own hands in cases such as this one because the general society does not believe that the criminal will be dealt with by our legal system in a correct manner.

The child victim may also fear that at some point the criminal could return and harm the victim at a future date which would lead to the child being less likely to report the crime in the first place. There is also the possibility of a life time of appeals from the criminal which the victim will now be forced to endure. Society as a whole has strong feelings about any adult who would rapes a small child. We know from past experience that these types of criminals will reoffend if given the opportunity. No prison is full proof when it comes to a prisoner who has been sentenced to life. As for the argument that society has changing values on the death penalty, the court is correct and where child rape was not viewed in as harsh a light in the past it is now viewed as one of the most heinous crimes in our current society. One would think that the Court would have taken these issues into consideration when making such a sensitive decision.

By no mean am I saying that I support the death penalty in general but in rare cases I am giving pause to think that maybe it would be in the best interest for society. Cases such as repeated murder, muder of a law official in the line of duty and child rape are amount the most extreme cases and should be considered for such harsh punishment.