While California lawmakers are trying to protect pedophiles, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) on Thursday threw support behind his state's decision to seek the death penalty for a man indicted for the sexual battery of a child.
"Today, @flsao5 announced that they will seek the death penalty in a case of sexual battery against a child under age 12," DeSantis wronte on X, noting that it's the first case to challenge Supreme Court decisions regarding rape since he signed legislation that would "make pedophiles eligible for the death penalty."
The Supreme Court has held that rape does not merit the death penalty unless the victim is killed.
Today, @flsao5 announced that they will seek the death penalty in a case of sexual battery against a child under age 12.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) December 14, 2023
It will be the first case to challenge SCOTUS since I signed legislation to make pedophiles eligible for the death penalty.
@flsao5 has my full support.
The post was made to X just hours after State Attorney William Gladsome filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty in the case of Joseph Andrew Giampa, who has been indicted on six counts of sexual battery on a person under the age of 12, and three counts of promoting a sexual performance by a child.
Given the severity of the crime and its impact on the community, the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office has filed a notice that it intends to seek the death penalty pursuant to Florida Statutes 794.011(2)(a) and 921.1425.
The decision to pursue the highest penalty reflects the gravity of the charges and the State Attorney’s Office’s dedication to holding criminals accountable for their actions. The State Attorney's Office acknowledges the sensitivity of this matter and the impact it has on the community. Our commitment to ensuring justice and protecting the vulnerable remains unwavering.
The 36-year-old Giampa was arrested in November. According to the affidavit, Giampa led authorities to a camper and showed them video on a laptop of a man sexually abusing a child while recording the act. The man can be seen and heard giving the victim instructions, The Messenger reports, adding that at one point, the man reportedly exposed himself and sat in a chair facing the juvenille victim, who then performed oral sex on him before he performed an act on her.
According to The Leesburg News, the suspect "told her that he knew she probably did not like [the sex acts] although he liked it more when she did not."
The man then puts the camera down and moves in front of it, revealing that it was Giampa.
"If an individual rapes an 11-year-old, a 10-year-old, a 2-year-old or a 5-year-old, they should be subject to the death penalty," said state Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers), who sponsored the bill.
As The Messenger further notes, the case is highly unique, as it's likely the first time in modern history that prosecutors will seek the death penalty for such an act that did not involve murder.
It' is's also likely to set off constitutional challenges as current Supreme Court precedent does not allow capital punishment for rape.
The court ruled in 1977 that applying the penalty in cases of rape violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The court once again ruled in 2008 that the punishment was unconstitutional in cases of child rape that don’t result in the death of the victim.
Despite this, lawmakers in Florida passed a bill making sexual battery of a child eligible for the death penalty.
The Florida bill stated that prior high court rulings on the matter were “wrongly decided, and that such cases are an egregious infringement of the states’ power to punish the most heinous of crimes.” -The Messenger
The bill went into effect Oct. 1.
Trump and DeSantis on the same page
In July, former President Trump released a campaign proposal that would hit human traffickers with the death penalty.
"When I am back in the White House, I will immediately end the Biden border nightmare that traffickers are using to exploit vulnerable women and children," said Trump in a video released by his campaign. "I will urge Congress to ensure that anyone caught trafficking children across our border receives the death penalty immediately."
Works for us!
While California lawmakers are trying to protect pedophiles, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) on Thursday threw support behind his state’s decision to seek the death penalty for a man indicted for the sexual battery of a child.
“Today, @flsao5 announced that they will seek the death penalty in a case of sexual battery against a child under age 12,” DeSantis wronte on X, noting that it’s the first case to challenge Supreme Court decisions regarding rape since he signed legislation that would “make pedophiles eligible for the death penalty.”
The Supreme Court has held that rape does not merit the death penalty unless the victim is killed.
Today, @flsao5 announced that they will seek the death penalty in a case of sexual battery against a child under age 12.
It will be the first case to challenge SCOTUS since I signed legislation to make pedophiles eligible for the death penalty.
@flsao5 has my full support.— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) December 14, 2023
The post was made to X just hours after State Attorney William Gladsome filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty in the case of Joseph Andrew Giampa, who has been indicted on six counts of sexual battery on a person under the age of 12, and three counts of promoting a sexual performance by a child.
Given the severity of the crime and its impact on the community, the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office has filed a notice that it intends to seek the death penalty pursuant to Florida Statutes 794.011(2)(a) and 921.1425.
The decision to pursue the highest penalty reflects the gravity of the charges and the State Attorney’s Office’s dedication to holding criminals accountable for their actions. The State Attorney’s Office acknowledges the sensitivity of this matter and the impact it has on the community. Our commitment to ensuring justice and protecting the vulnerable remains unwavering.
The 36-year-old Giampa was arrested in November. According to the affidavit, Giampa led authorities to a camper and showed them video on a laptop of a man sexually abusing a child while recording the act. The man can be seen and heard giving the victim instructions, The Messenger reports, adding that at one point, the man reportedly exposed himself and sat in a chair facing the juvenille victim, who then performed oral sex on him before he performed an act on her.
According to The Leesburg News, the suspect “told her that he knew she probably did not like [the sex acts] although he liked it more when she did not.”
The man then puts the camera down and moves in front of it, revealing that it was Giampa.
“If an individual rapes an 11-year-old, a 10-year-old, a 2-year-old or a 5-year-old, they should be subject to the death penalty,” said state Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers), who sponsored the bill.
As The Messenger further notes, the case is highly unique, as it’s likely the first time in modern history that prosecutors will seek the death penalty for such an act that did not involve murder.
It’ is’s also likely to set off constitutional challenges as current Supreme Court precedent does not allow capital punishment for rape.
The court ruled in 1977 that applying the penalty in cases of rape violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The court once again ruled in 2008 that the punishment was unconstitutional in cases of child rape that don’t result in the death of the victim.
Despite this, lawmakers in Florida passed a bill making sexual battery of a child eligible for the death penalty.
The Florida bill stated that prior high court rulings on the matter were “wrongly decided, and that such cases are an egregious infringement of the states’ power to punish the most heinous of crimes.” -The Messenger
The bill went into effect Oct. 1.
Trump and DeSantis on the same page
In July, former President Trump released a campaign proposal that would hit human traffickers with the death penalty.
“When I am back in the White House, I will immediately end the Biden border nightmare that traffickers are using to exploit vulnerable women and children,” said Trump in a video released by his campaign. “I will urge Congress to ensure that anyone caught trafficking children across our border receives the death penalty immediately.”
Works for us!
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