Blaze News – Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) proposed a slate of criminal justice reforms on Thursday, including making convicted child rapists eligible for execution and reducing the number of jurors required to recommend the death penalty.
At a Miami Police Benevolent Association event Thursday, DeSantis said:
“We want to make sure that we cement our reputation as being a law-and-order state and take actions as necessary to help further protect the people of the state of Florida,”
“Right now in Florida, our crime rate is at a 50-year low. Overall crime down nearly 10% year-over-year, murder down 14%, burglary down 15[%], and robbery down 7%.”
DeSantis summarized the proposals in a tweet on Thursday afternoon.
[NOTE: Lethal injection is the primary means of execution in Florida and all other states where it’s legal except South Carolina. Execution by hanging would require separate legislation.]
Part of the proposed anti-crime legislation “ensures the minimum sentence for all child rapists is life in prison without the possibility of parole and advances reforms to reinstate capital punishment for these crimes.”
Drug-related proposals include imposing additional penalties when the drug resembles candy and dedicating $20 million to support local law enforcement efforts, like fentanyl-specific strike teams.
DeSantis also proposed reducing the number of jurors required to recommend the death penalty.
Rather than requiring unanimity, a jury could recommend the death penalty with a supermajority of its members …
