Child sex abusers could face surgical castration under Louisiana Bill in US
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The Bill - overwhelmingly passed by Louisiana's state legislature - will now go before Republican Governor Jeff Landry (above).
PHOTO: USA TODAY NETWORK VIA REUTERS
BATON ROUGE - People who commit sex crimes against children in Louisiana could be forced to undergo surgical castration under legislation approved by state lawmakers, a measure that would appear to be the first of its kind in the US if the governor signs it into law.
The Bill, which was overwhelmingly passed by the state legislature on June 3, would permit judges to order surgical castration for defendants convicted of certain aggravated sex crimes, such as rape, against children under the age of 13.
It will now go before Governor Jeff Landry, a Republican. Mr Landry’s office did not immediately respond when asked whether he intends to sign the legislation. If adopted, it would apply to those convicted of crimes that occurred after Aug 1.
A handful of states, including Louisiana, California and Texas, already have laws that give judges the power to order chemical castration in some cases, a less intrusive measure that involves taking hormone-blocking medication.
But Louisiana would be the first state to allow judges to impose surgical castration as a penalty, according to the National Association for Rational Sexual Offence Laws (Narsol), an advocacy group that opposed the Bill.
The Bill was introduced by Representatives Delisha Boyd and Regina Barrow, who first saw it as a long shot.
Ms Boyd said she was moved after she read news reports in early May that a man accused of raping a 12-year-old girl was already a registered sex offender who had previously assaulted a five-year-old.
She said she could not help but think about her own family: Her mother carried trauma for much of her life after being raped by a family acquaintance at age 15.
“I said, ‘We’ve got to push it – we have to do something for these kids,’” said Ms Boyd, who represents New Orleans.
Within two weeks, Ms Boyd and Ms Barrow persuaded their respective chambers, both dominated by Republicans, to approve final passage of the Bill, putting the state on track to become the first to codify such a procedure.
“We are talking about babies who are being violated by somebody,” Ms Barrow told lawmakers during an April committee meeting. “That is inexcusable.”
The Bill requires a determination from a court-appointed medical expert that a defendant is an “appropriate candidate for surgery” before a judge can order the procedure.
Opponents argue the punishment is cruel and note that surgical castration, unlike chemical castration, is irreversible.
“It is, at best, ineffective and, at worst, barbaric,” Ms Sandy Rozek, a spokesperson for Narsol, said in a statement. REUTERS