FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — Leitchfield Rep. Samara Heavrin continues to fight for Angela’s Law, a bill she pioneered that would extend death penalty eligibility to certain cases, like the death of Angela Kerr.
“On March 12, 2021, I received a phone call that my daughter had been murdered,” Doug Kerr, Angela’s father, said in a July 24 meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary.
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Angela was 27 years old when she was killed by a Radcliff man with a lengthy criminal history. He’d spent just around one year of his adult life out of prison before being convicted of Angela’s death, Heavrin testified on Thursday.
The horror continued for the Kerr family when they found out, by watching the news, that their daughter had been found nude. They later learned that the man responsible filmed himself raping Angela after she’d been killed, a crime punishable by a maximum of five years. Under KRS 525.120, abuse of a corpse is not considered an aggravating circumstance to pursue harsher penalties post-conviction.
“There’s never such a terrible thing as having to be told that your daughter was murdered and then taped, having sex with her,” Doug said.
If a victim is raped prior to a murder, then prosecutors may use the act to pursue the death penalty, as rape is considered an aggravating circumstance in KRS 532.025. Her mother, Angie Kerr, testified that she believes the crime should be treated as if Angela were still alive.
“He committed sex with her after she died, and she’s not considered human. I don’t think that’s right. She’s still human to us even today,” Angie said.
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“The harshest penalties of the law are reserved for those who commit the worst crimes,” Heavrin said. “Unfortunately, our current laws do not afford these penalties, such as life in prison or death, for murderers who sexually degrade the remains of their victims. Angela’s Law would allow prosecutors, in cases of murder and kidnapping eligible for the death penalty, to use the rape of a victim’s remains to pursue the harshest of penalties for the perpetrator.”
During the 2024 Regular Session, Rep. Heavrin filed House Bill 198, known as Angela’s Law. She intends to reintroduce the legislation in 2026.
“Angela’s Law will allow a victim’s family to receive the much-deserved justice when subjected to such heinous crimes,” Heavrin added. “Whether a person is living or recently deceased, they are a human being in the eyes of the community and their family and should be entitled to the justice they deserve regardless of the time of their rape. Further, there is no place in civil society for individuals who act with such inhumane disregard for human life and abject indignity for human remains. Angela’s family deserved a better outcome, and families of future victims deserve more from our justice system. Our commonwealth must ensure that those who murder and act with further inhumanity against their victim are unable to walk our streets in freedom. We must have Angela’s Law.”
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