S.C. High Court Rules Against Castration Option for Rapists
The state’s Supreme Court today ordered the resentencing of three convicted rapists who had been given the option of a 30-year prison term or castration and probation, saying the option was unconstitutional.
The justices ruled that Circuit Court Judge Victor Pyle’s sentence was void because castration is “a form of mutilation” and prohibited by the state Constitution.
Roscoe Brown, Michael Braxton and Mark Vaughn were convicted in the rape of an Anderson woman and sentenced to 30 years in prison with the option of castration and five years probation.
All three men appealed the sentence as “cruel and unusual punishment,” but Brown dropped his appeal. He instead asked the high court to order the castration carried out.
After Brown filed his petition, Braxton and Vaughn asked the Supreme Court to dismiss their appeals so they too could opt for castration.
Pyle, who ordered the castration option after the trial in November, 1983, halted the castration until the appeals of Brown’s co-defendants could be heard in the high court.
Lawyers for all three argued Jan. 7 before the high court, asking that their clients be allowed to go through with the castrations.
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