Using new law, Florida seeks death for man accused in child sexual battery

Dec. 15 (UPI) -- Florida State Attorney Bill Gladson will seek the death penalty against a man accused of child sexual battery under a new law that expanded capital punishment to include child sexual battery.

Joseph Andrew Giampa faces charges of sexual child battery on a person younger than 12. This appears to be the first time the new law is being used.

Florida State Attorney Bill Gladson said in a statement, "Given the severity of the crime and its impact on the community, the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office has filed a notice that it intends to seek the death penalty pursuant to Florida Statutes 794.011(2)(a) and 921.1425."

Gladson added that the decision "reflects the gravity of the charges and the State Attorney's Office's dedication to holding criminals accountable for their actions."

The new expansion of Florida's death penalty signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis states, "A person 18 years of age or older who commits sexual battery upon, or in an attempt to commit sexual battery injures the sexual organs of, a person less than 12 years of age commits a capital felony."

Legal challenges to the law are expected, since the U.S. Supreme Court decided in 1977 that capital punishment for rape violated the Eighth Amendment's cruel and unusual punishment prohibition.

Another SCOTUS decision in 2008 -- Kennedy vs. Louisiana -- held that the death penalty violates the Constitution when applied in non-lethal child rape cases.

Florida and Texas are the leading death penalty states in the United States, together accounting more than half of 2023's 24 U.S. executions, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.