BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - A Baton Rouge man accused of raping a 4-year-old child and exposing her to a sexually transmitted disease is behind bars, and prosecutors say some of the harshest punishments available may be on the table if he is convicted.

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East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore said Monday, Sep. 8, that his office is exploring every option in the case against Anthony Jelks, which could include surgical castration or the death penalty.

“I can’t think of anything worse than raping a child,” Moore said.

Louisiana became the first state in 2024 to allow surgical castration, in addition to chemical castration, in certain sexual assault cases. That gives Moore a clear path to pursue t

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