WASHINGTON -- Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal blasted the Supreme Court Wednesday after the high court rejected a call to revisit its recent decision outlawing executions for people convicted of raping children.

WWL-TV

Governor Bobby Jindal

The unusual request, by Louisiana and the Bush administration, was based on the failure of anyone involved in the case to take account of a federal law in 2006 that authorizes the death penalty for members of the military who are convicted of child rape.

The state argued that the case should be reopened because Justice Anthony Kennedy relied in part on what he called a "national consensus" against executing convicted rapists. The court split 5-4 in the June 25 ruling.

The justices issued an amended opinion today that adds a footnote concerning military law, but otherwise leaves the essence of the decision untouched.

Forty-four-year-old Patrick Kennedy was sentenced to death for the rape of his 8-year-old stepdaughter in Jefferson Parish. He is one of two people in the United States, both in Louisiana, who have been condemned to death for a rape that was not also accompanied by a killing.

“The Supreme Court was dead wrong in their ruling," Governor Bobby Jindal said. "It is disappointing that they did not take this opportunity to move quickly to rehear this case and examine their legally improper and absurd decision to remove death as a penalty for the horrific crime of raping a child. The fact that they based their ruling on their own perception of a ‘national trend’ against the death penalty is outrageous and harms the credibility of the entire Court. We will continue to work to evaluate ways to amend our statute to maintain death as a penalty for the incredibly brutal crime of raping a child.”

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)