Alabama lawmakers have passed a bill requiring sex offenders whose victims are children to undergo chemical castration — and pay for it themselves — as a condition of parole.
The bill, passed on the final day of the legislative session last Friday, now awaits the signature of GOP Gov. Kay Ivey, AL.com reported.
Deputy press secretary Lori Jhons told the news outlet Wednesday that Ivey was still studying the legislation.
Republican state Rep. Steve Hurst sponsored the measure, as he has done for similar bills previously, AL.com reported, arguing children who are victims of sex offenses suffer lasting effects, and those who who commit the crimes should too.
Alabama wouldn’t be the first to enact such a law; California and Florida both have chemical castration laws on the books, the news outlet reported
Under the Alabama measure, courts would order a person convicted of a sex offense involving a victim under 13 to undergo chemical castration treatment as a condition of parole — and would have to start treatment at least a month before release from prison and continue it until a court determines it’s no longer necessary.
The Alabama Department of Public Health would administer the treatment, but the offender would pay for it unless a court determined otherwise, Al.com reported.
Democratic Alabama state Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison, who voted for the bill, told an ABC affiliate she questions how it’ll be enforced — and if Ivey will even sign it.
"I didn't think that it would get passed really and I'm wondering whether the governor is really going to sign it," she said.
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