Patrick Kennedy was convicted of the aggravated rape of his eight-year-old stepdaughter under a Louisiana statute that authorized capital punishment for the rape of a child under 12 years of age and was sentenced to death. On his appeal, the Supreme Court of Louisiana affirmed. Kennedy petitioned for certiorari, which was granted. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed and remanded.

Facts
At 9:18 a.m. on March 2, 1998, Patrick Kennedy called 911 to report that his stepdaughter, L. H., had been raped. When police arrived at Kennedy’s home between 9:20 and 9:30 a.m., they found L. H. on her bed, wearing a T-shirt and wrapped in a bloody blanket. She was bleeding profusely from the vaginal area. Kennedy told police he had carried her from the yard to the bathtub and then to the bed. Once in the bedroom, Kennedy had used a basin of water and a cloth to wipe blood from the victim......

1. According to the Court, why is death a disproportionate penalty for child rape? Do you agree Explain your reasons.

2. Who should make the decision as to what is the appropriate penalty for crimes? Courts? Legislatures?Juries? Defend your answer.

3. In deciding whether the death penalty for child rape is cruel and unusual, is it relevant that Louisiana is the only state that punishes child rape with death?
4. According to the Court, some crimes are worse than death. Do you agree? Is child rape one of them? Why or why not?