MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama Senate has given final approval to legislation that would allow the death penalty for certain sexual crimes against children under age 12.
Senators voted 33-1 to pass House Bill 41, known as the Child Predator Death Penalty Act. The measure would make rape and sexual torture of a child under 12 capital offenses, making a person eligible for the death penalty.
The bill was sponsored in the House by Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, and carried in the Senate by Sen. April Weaver, R-Brierfield.
Weaver said the legislation sends a clear message.
“The biggest thing it accomplishes is that it shows we have zero tolerance for sex predators in Alabama,” Weaver said.
While the vote was overwhelmingly in favor, some lawmakers raised concerns about the irreversible nature of capital punishment.
Senate Democratic Minority Leader Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, warned about the risk of wrongful convictions.
“Once we do the death penalty, it’s over. It’s not like, uh oh, we got the wrong man,” Singleton said.
Weaver pushed back on those concerns, emphasizing that a death sentence would not be automatic.
“I feel for sure they will do the right thing. It means you’re death eligible. It does not mean it’s an automatic sentence for you. Prosecutors will look at that on a case by case basis,” Weaver said.
The lone vote against the bill came from Sen. Vivian Figures, D-Mobile, who said her opposition was based on her longstanding stance against the death penalty.
“I think it’s a worse penalty for that person to have to sit in jail every day and think about what they’ve done. But I wanted it to be known why I was voting no on this bill, because protecting our children means everything to me,” Figures said.
Weaver said the possibility of a death sentence for those who abuse children goes beyond punishment.
“I believe there’s a special place in hell for people who do this to our children. And today we’re one step closer to having a special place for them in Alabama, and that’s on death row in the death chamber at Holman Prison,” she said.
The bill now heads to Gov. Kay Ivey for her signature and is likely to face legal challenges over its constitutionality. Alabama is one of six states that have passed similar measures.
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