As of August 5, Act 662 will usher in a significant change in Arkansas law, allowing prosecutors to pursue the death penalty for individuals convicted of raping children aged 13 years or younger.

The new legislation, stemming from Arkansas Senate Bill 375 passed during the 2025 Regular Session, marks a significant change from the previous maximum penalty of life imprisonment for rape offenses in the state.

Sonia Hagood, Prosecuting Attorney for Arkansas’ Second Judicial District, highlighted the importance of the new statute, which introduces the offense of ‘capital rape’ exclusively for cases involving minors.

“The enactment of the new capital rape statute reflects Arkansas’s firm commitment to protecting its most vulnerable citizens,” Hagood said to NEA Report. “While we acknowledge that the statute may face constitutional scrutiny, our office stands ready to seek its application in appropriate cases. When we have victims who are brave and willing to face their abusers in trial, we will pursue this statute to the fullest extent permitted by law.”

Critically, the new law addresses concerns raised by prior legal challenges, notably the 2008 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Kennedy v. Louisiana, which deemed the death penalty unconstitutional for non-lethal crimes such as child rape.

The legislation stipulates that adults convicted of capital rape face either death or life imprisonment without parole, while offenders under the age of 18 at the time of the offense face life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving a minimum of twenty years.

Read the bill yourself!

– NEAReport