Local & Regional
(2010-02-09)
Rex Duncan
Oklahoma House
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Repeat sex offenders convicted of raping a child 6 years old or younger would be eligible for the death penalty under a bill passed by a House committee.
The bill by Rep. Rex Duncan was overwhelmingly approved Monday by the House Judiciary Committee, despite a 2008 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that such laws were unconstitutional.
The Sand Springs Republican says he feels the court erred in its decision and that he believes a new court could uphold the law.
In a Louisiana case in which a man was sentenced to death for raping an 8-year-old girl, the nation's highest court ruled that allowing the death penalty in such cases violates the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. © Copyright 2010, kwgs
