Florida Will Pursue Death Penalty Against Accused Child Rapist Under New Law
Governor DeSantis signed a bill this year allowing the death penalty for child rapists, challenging Supreme Court precedent
The state of Florida will pursue the death penalty against an accused child rapist, which is likely to result in a legal battle challenging current Supreme Court precedent.
Last year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB 1297 into law, allowing child sexual assailants to be punished with the death penalty, as The Blaze reported.
State Attorney William Gladson announced last week the state would seek the death penalty against Joseph Andrew Giampa, 36, who has been indicted on heinous sex crimes against a child.
Giampa was arrested in November after police identified him raping a child on camera in a video allegedly found on his laptop. He has been charged with six counts of sexual battery of a child under 12 and three counts of promoting the sexual performance of a child.
Gladson said Giampa qualified for the death penalty due to the "severity of the crime and its impact on the community."
Governor DeSantis voiced his support in a post on social media.
“Today, @flsao5 announced that they will seek the death penalty in a case of sexual battery against a child under age 12,” he wrote on X. “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.”
When 1297 was signed, DeSantis made clear that Florida is prepared to defend the law all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled against the death penalty for sexual assault in 2008.
"The Governor is prepared to take this law all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to overrule judicial precedents which have unjustly shielded child rapists from the death penalty and denied victims and their loved ones the opportunity to pursue ultimate justice against these most heinous criminals,” a statement from DeSantis’ office said at the time.