Child predators can now get the death penalty in Alabama

Governor signs law challenging Supreme Court

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed the Child Predator Death Penalty Act on Feb. 12, 2026.

The law makes first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy, and sexual torture of a child under 12 punishable by death or life in prison.

It takes effect Oct. 1, 2026, and applies only to offenses committed after that date. The law directly challenges a 2008 Supreme Court ruling that bars capital punishment when the victim did not die.

Lawmakers passed it with little opposition

The bill sailed through the Alabama legislature. Gov. Ivey had called the bill a top priority in her State of the State address.

Rep. Matt Simpson, a Republican from Daphne, sponsored it in the House, where it passed 73-6 in late January 2026. Sen. April Weaver, a Republican from Brierfield, carried it in the Senate, which approved it 33-1 on Feb. 5.

The only Senate vote against came from Sen. Vivian Figures, a Democrat from Mobile who opposes capital punishment.

A Bibb County case drove the push

The bill grew out of a child abuse case uncovered in Bibb County in 2025.

Weaver, whose district includes Bibb County, championed the legislation after the case came to light.

Authorities found an underground bunker near Brent, Ala., that had been used for child sexual exploitation.

Eight suspects face more than 100 combined felony charges. At least 10 children, ranging in age from 3 to 15, were identified as victims.

The law clashes with a 2008 ruling

In Kennedy v. Louisiana, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in 2008 that sentencing someone to death for child rape violates the Eighth Amendment.

The majority said capital punishment is not proportional when the victim did not die. Alabama’s new law directly contradicts that decision.

Supporters know the conflict exists but believe the court should take another look. The law’s legality may not face a real test until a prosecutor actually wins a death sentence under it.

Five states already passed similar laws

Alabama is not going it alone. Florida led the way in 2023, becoming the first state to pass a similar law.

Tennessee followed in 2024, and Idaho, Arkansas, and Oklahoma each passed their own versions in 2025. Alabama now makes six.

At least five more states have proposed similar bills.

The growing list is part of a deliberate strategy to build enough momentum for the Supreme Court to reconsider its 2008 decision.

Backers think the court may be ready

Simpson, a former prosecutor, said building a coalition of states could push the Supreme Court to revisit the issue.

Three of the four justices who disagreed with the original 2008 ruling are still serving: Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito, and Justice Clarence Thomas.

The court has shifted more conservative since then.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said his office is prepared to defend the law and support other states with similar statutes.

Some lawmakers questioned the approach

Not everyone was on board.

Democratic Sens. Rodger Smitherman and Merika Coleman questioned why the legislature would pass a law that conflicts with established Supreme Court precedent.

Critics also pointed out that taxpayers would foot the bill for any court challenge.

Weaver pushed back, comparing the strategy to Alabama’s Human Life Protection Act, which banned most abortions before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Weaver said she expects the same result here.

Critics say the law could backfire

The Death Penalty Information Center warned that laws like this could discourage victims from coming forward.

Most child sexual abuse is committed by family members, which makes reporting even harder when a death sentence is on the table.

The Supreme Court raised this same concern in its 2008 Kennedy ruling, noting that child advocacy groups had flagged the issue.

Robin Maher, the center’s executive director, said such laws “may be counterproductive despite good intentions.”

Florida is already testing the legal limits

Florida is the only state actively seeking death sentences under its version of the law.

In Nov. 2025, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced plans to seek the death penalty against a man indicted on multiple counts of sexual battery of children under 12.

Prosecutors in at least two other Florida counties have also filed death penalty notices in child abuse cases. These cases could become the path for a Supreme Court challenge to the 2008 precedent.

Prosecutors get a new option in Alabama

The law adds three offenses to Alabama‘s existing list of capital crimes.

Prosecutors will have the option, not the obligation, to seek the death penalty in qualifying cases. Any death sentence imposed under the law would almost certainly face a constitutional challenge in court.

The outcome may come down to whether the Supreme Court agrees to hear a case and revisit its 2008 ruling.

A national push keeps growing

The movement to expand capital punishment to child sexual abuse crimes has picked up speed since 2023.

In Sept. 2025, Florida led 15 states in asking U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to support efforts to overturn the Kennedy ruling.

President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum in 2025 directing the Department of Justice to pursue expanded use of the death penalty.

Legal experts say the issue could reach the Supreme Court within the next few years.

The constitutional question remains open

Alabama’s law takes effect Oct. 1, 2026, but no one has been charged under it yet. The law’s enforceability depends on a future Supreme Court decision.

For now, Alabama has put the statute on the books as part of a multistate strategy to challenge the 2008 precedent. Both supporters and opponents agree on one thing: the constitutional question is far from settled.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

Read more from this brand:

• How a Coke fortune gave Alabama its most peaceful gardens
• This Alabama city hall overlooks America’s last African-founded community built by slavery survivors
• Before Las Vegas and Los Alamos, Alabama had America’s first instant mega-city