TBA Law Blog

TBA Law Blog

Tennessee Lawmaker Seeks to Expand Death Penalty for Child Rape Cases

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Dec 17, 2025

Tennessee state Rep. Greg Martin, R-Hixson is pushing legislation to expand the state’s death penalty law for child rapists, aiming to streamline the process and add clear “aggravating factors” that prosecutors can use when seeking capital punishment. Under current law, rapists of children under 12 may face the death penalty, but no one has yet been sentenced under that statute, in part because of vague definitions of aggravating circumstances, according to Fox 17. Martin’s bill would clarify factors such as abuse of a child under 4, positions of trust, prior convictions, incest, use of drugs or deadly weapons, filming the crime or other especially cruel actions. Advocates support harsher penalties, saying such crimes destroy a child’s spirit, while others, including some survivors and sexual assault experts, say that capital punishment is not always the preferred path, emphasizing lifetime incarceration and the complexities of abuse within families.

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