Alabama is enacting a slate of new laws Oct. 1 that target child predators, drunk drivers, and animal abusers—proving that while D.C. gridlocks and the establishment press obsesses over student "social anxiety," states can still deliver actual public safety.
The laws, which include a direct constitutional challenge to the U.S. Supreme Court on capital punishment for child rape, demonstrate the Tenth Amendment working as the Founders intended: states stepping into the void to protect citizens where the federal government has failed or refused to act.
According to AL.com, the Alabama legislature concluded its 2026 session with a package of laws taking effect Oct. 1. The flagship is the Child Predator Death Penalty Act, sponsored by Rep. Matt Simpson and Sen. April Weaver. The law makes first-degree rape, sodomy, and sexual torture a capital offense if the victim is under 12. It directly challenges the 2008 Supreme Court ruling in Kennedy v. Louisiana, which declared the death penalty unconstitutional for crimes that didn't cause the victim's death. "We are putting these sick individuals on notice that a cell on death row awaits them if they abuse the most innocent and defenseless among us," Weaver said.
Other laws address tangible harms. Trey's Law, inspired by a sexual abuse victim who later took his own life, voids any nondisclosure, employment, or settlement agreement that hides sexual abuse or related facts—a win for transparency and free speech. The Devinee Rooney and John Wesley Holt Safe Streets Act fixes a glaring inconsistency in state law: previously, causing death while driving impaired carried up to 10 years, while causing serious physical injury carried up to 20. The new law ensures killing someone while DUI is punished at least as severely as injuring them, and strengthens penalties for fleeing crash scenes. Beau's Law establishes standards of care for dogs confined outdoors, with misdemeanor charges for violators.
Meanwhile, the institutional press is focused on a different kind of crisis. The BBC dedicated coverage to the "hidden habits" that worsen "social anxiety" among university students, citing experts who blame smartphones and a culture that supposedly admires "extrovertism." The BBC report warns that shy students are "internalising" their feelings rather than seeking help, offering a stark contrast in priorities: while Alabama's legislature is passing laws to execute child rapists and protect victims from silencing agreements, the state media across the pond is hand-holding adults who feel awkward at university clubs.
Alabama is betting that citizens would rather live under a state government that puts predators on death row than one that tells them their real problem is feeling shy. Whether the Supreme Court will let them remains the open question.
