Alabama Lawmakers Pass Bill That Requires Child Predators Be Castrated

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Alabama Lawmakers Back Chemical Castration For Child Predators

State lawmakers in Alabama have passed a bill that would require child predators to be “chemically castrated” before they leave prison, according to a report on Tuesday.

The bill–which was submitted to Gov. Kay Ivey over this past weekend–will require that sex offenders convicted of abusing a child under the age of 13 to take drugs that block the production of testosterone and hormones as a condition of parole. In the event that a convict refuses to take the medication, they’ll be considered in violation of parole and immediately taken back into custody. These convicted child predators will also be required to pay for the medication themselves.

The treatments would begin a month before a sex offender is released from prison and will continue until a judge decides it’s no longer necessary, according to the the bill.

State Rep. Allen Treadaway told a local Fox affiliate that he backed the bill to “ensure public safety. “Any action that we can take against a child molester that would prevent them from ever committing this type of crime again, I support, including chemical castration,” he said to the news station. “I think this bill is one of those steps to ensure public safety.”

State Rep. Juandalynn Givan, on the other hand, said the proposed legislation is far-reaching. “You have to deal with the mind of a predator,” she said. “You don’t worry about the physical body parts. You have to deal with makes them do what they do.”

According to Attorney Raymond Johnson, the bill will likely be challenged under the Eighth Amendment for potentially being cruel and unusual punishment