Tennessee lawmakers set to debate over bill to authorize death penalty for child rapists

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — It’s the ultimate punishment.

“They should forfeit their own life,” House Majority Leader William Lamberth (R-Portland) said. “They should face the death penalty.”

Lamberth introduced a bill this week to authorize the death penalty for child rapists, if they were an adult at the time of the crime. He said he brought the bill for victims.

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“Their lives are altered forever,” Lamberth said. “They carry those scars for the rest of their life.”

It’s a bill Democrats are treading cautiously around. When News 2 asked leadership about it, they didn’t, one way or another, explicitly support or oppose it.

“We really need to look and ask ourselves, ‘What would be the best deterrent?’ and then pursue that,” House Democratic Caucus Chair John Ray Clemmons (D-Nashville) said. “If it’s the death penalty, then so be it. If it’s something else, let’s have that conversation, as well.”

Of course, the chair acknowledged that his caucus understands the severity of such a crime.

“We’re talking about a terrible crime. As a parent, this is something that we all take seriously, this isn’t a partisan issue,” Clemmons said. “Separate and apart from that, we need to evaluate the death penalty as a standalone issue.”

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In 2008, the United States Supreme Court weighed in on this type of legislation, ruling that the death penalty for child rapists was unconstitutional.

But Lamberth cited other overturned rulings – think Roe v. Wade – showing this current makeup of the court has been willing to upset precedent.

“I know that in passing this bill, this will be a bill that I’m sure will be challenged in court,” he said. “I hope it goes all the way back up the Supreme Court and that they change their mind on this.”

Tennessee currently is not carrying out executions after a report came out in late 2022 that the state was failing to follow protocol. Gov. Bill Lee (R-Tennessee) appointed a new commissioner in early 2023 to fix those problems.

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News 2 did reach out to the Tennessee Dept. of Correction (TDOC) to see how far along it was in revamping protocol.

In response, a spokesperson wrote, ‘The Tennessee Department of Correction is in the process of developing a lethal injection protocol that ensures lawful and effective procedures.’

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