Supreme Court: Death Penalty Reserved "for crimes that take the life of the victim"

The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, struck down Louisiana's law allowing a death sentence for those guilty of child rape. The Kennedy v. Louisiana opinion additionally extended the current understanding of death-eligible crimes, clarifying that the death penalty is “for crimes that take the life of the victim."

More from SCOTUSblog:

Barring the death penalty for any crime that does not take the life of an individual victim, the Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that it is unconstitutional to impose the death penalty for the crime of raping a child. If the victim does not die and death was not intended, capital punishment for that crime violates the Eighth Amendment, the Court ruled in an opinion by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. The case was Patrick Kennedy v. Louisiana (07-343). The broad declaration that death sentences should be reserved “for crimes that take the life of the victim” will apply, the Court said, to crimes against individuals...

You can find the opinion here.