Bill
H 4043
The bill preserves the death penalty for child rape but delays execution until Kennedy v. Louisiana is overturned, with an expedited state-court path to test that precedent.
Note on source documents
- The provided materials contain text from two different bills (a South Carolina “Child Rapist Death Penalty Act” and an unrelated Massachusetts bill on copayment assistance for medications). This summary focuses on the Child Rapist Death Penalty Act (South Carolina text amending S.C. Code §16-3-655). Readers should verify jurisdiction and bill identifiers with the official legislative source.
Purpose and intent
- The bill is titled the “Child Rapist Death Penalty Act.” Its stated intent is to authorize and preserve the State’s ability to seek the death penalty for criminal sexual conduct with a minor under S.C. Code §16-3-655 notwithstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent (Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 407 (2008)), which held that the Eighth Amendment bars the death penalty for child rape in cases where the victim does not die.
Key provisions
- Adds new subsections (J) and (K) to S.C. Code §16-3-655:
- (J) Declares that §16-3-655 “shall remain in effect and shall be enforced” despite the Supreme Court’s Kennedy ruling. However, any death sentence imposed under this section must expressly state it may not be carried out until Kennedy v. Louisiana is overruled.
- (K) Establishes a special interlocutory appeal procedure when the State seeks the death penalty but believes U.S. Supreme Court precedent precludes imposition:
- The State may immediately appeal to the South Carolina Supreme Court to seek reconsideration of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
- The State must notify the trial court, which the bill requires to enter an order prohibiting the State from seeking the death penalty; the State may then appeal that order.
- The State must file notice of appeal within 14 days; filing automatically stays trial court proceedings.
- The South Carolina Supreme Court must expedite the appeal and resolve it as quickly as possible.
- The South Carolina Supreme Court may summarily affirm if it determines (or the State concedes) that U.S. Supreme Court precedent precludes imposition of the death penalty; the State may then petition the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari from any adverse state-court decision.
- Effective date: upon approval by the Governor.
Who would be affected
- Defendants charged under S.C. Code §16-3-655 (criminal sexual conduct with a minor).
- Prosecutors seeking capital punishment in such cases.
- Trial courts and the South Carolina Supreme Court due to the special interlocutory appeal procedures and stay requirement.
- Victims and victims’ families (potentially through changes in charging and sentencing practices).
- Broader legal community, because the bill creates a pathway intended to challenge or prompt reconsideration of U.S. Supreme Court precedent.
Practical and legal implications
- The bill attempts to preserve the State’s statutory authority to impose the death penalty for child rape but acknowledges that any execution would be deferred until the U.S. Supreme Court’s Kennedy precedent is overturned.
- It creates an expedited, interlocutory appellate mechanism to seek state-court reconsideration of federal precedent and to facilitate petitions for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court.
- Under the Supremacy Clause, state statutes cannot override binding U.S. Supreme Court decisions; therefore, the bill’s practical effect is to provoke litigation intended to produce a federal-court reexamination rather than to immediately authorize executions.
- The procedure could cause trial delays, additional appellate litigation, and increased resource demands on courts and prosecutors.
Legislative status and actions (as provided)
- Introduced: 02/19/2025 (read first time; referred to Judiciary).
- Sponsor actions list and later committee referrals in the source materials appear to mix records from different jurisdictions; verify the official state legislative history for accurate status and hearing dates.
- Effective upon gubernatorial approval, if enacted.
Recommendation
- Verify the bill’s official jurisdiction and bill number with the relevant state legislature (South Carolina) before taking legal or advocacy action, because the supplied packet includes unrelated Massachusetts bill text and mixed legislative actions.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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