Once upon a time, people who preyed on, hurt, or abused children were considered the worst of the worst. Not too long ago, justice was on the side of children. That is sadly not the case anymore.

Recently, the state of Kentucky became the cause of controversy when a daycare worker who is mentally ill and pretending to be a woman sexually abused an infant. After the man hired an activist lawyer, his charges were lowered from sexual abuse of a minor to sexual misconduct. The reason? He would not have access to estrogen if he served time in prison.

As infuriating as this case is, we must understand that this won’t be the last time we see cases like this. A dark force has taken over what used to be a sane nation. If children can no longer count on adults to protect their innocence, who can they count on?

Thankfully, the children of Florida and Tennessee can still count on the adults to protect their innocence. In 2023, Florida passed legislation that extends the death penalty to individuals who commit sexual battery against children under the age of 12. Currently, Tennessee is seeking to pass similar legislation that will extend the death penalty to those charged with raping a child. This bill has made it to the Finance Committee thanks to Republican approval. Unsurprisingly, those in opposition to the bill were members of the Democrat Party.

The death penalty is controversial even among conservatives. Some believe that there are crimes that justify the death penalty, and there are those who believe we shouldn’t get to choose who lives and dies. A common conservative argument against the death penalty is: If abortion is wrong, so is the death penalty.

Frankly, this argument can be easily dismantled. The victim of an abortion, the unborn baby, has not committed a crime. The person sentenced to the death has committed a crime, often a very heinous crime.

Perhaps harsh punishments are needed to deter crimes against children since rehabilitation is unlikely. According to the Office of Justice Programs, a study finds a “30 percent recidivism rate at year 10 of offender’s release from prison. By the year 25, re-offending had increased to 52 percent.”

There seems to be a group of people intent on normalizing crimes against children. Pedophilia and the abuse of children must not become normal in our country. Among the many hills one can die on, the hill of protecting the children’s innocence is one many should choose. Children cannot speak or make decisions for themselves. That is why they rely on the adults to do what’s best for them. Harsh punishments for sex offenders is what is best for the children.