Legal Age of Sexual Consent
Taylor Obert PSY 200B
March 16, 2017
Introduction Age of sexual consent refers to the age when an individual can consent to sexual activity. Sexual activities are defined differently by countries, with there even being a difference between the United States and Canada who share a border. The ages of consent also vary among countries and also by individual state in the United States. Engaging in sexually activities with individuals that are not the legal age of consent can result in criminal charges such as statutory rape, but many places have exceptions. These exceptions include certain gaps in age varying place to place, as well as the defense of not knowing the actual age of the victim.
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The states with the highest age of consent, which is 18 years old, are: Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, North Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming (Barnett, 2016).
United States Age Gap Provisions and Mistake of Age Defense In some cases where the individual/victim is not the legal age of consent and/or the defendant is over the age of 18 than there may be an age gap provision of the law in the state that makes the offense less of a crime because of the age gap, but it can still be prosecuted. The states that have the age gap provisions are: Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Washington DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming. No age gap provision in any state allows the defendant to be more than 4 years older than the other party (“Age of Consent Chart”, 2017). In the United States, there are provisions called Romeo and Juliet Laws, which were made known by Texas. The purpose of the Romeo and Juliet Laws is to prevent an individual from being charged with a criminal offense and/or having to register as a sex offender because they engage in sexual
Have you ever wondered what Statutory Rape really is? It is sexual intercourse with a minor. In humbler terms it is when a male adult 18 years or older has sexual intercourse with a female who is 17 years old or younger without consent. The issue that I have seen arise a great deal of the time is that the laws in most states are sexually biased when it comes to an adult male and an underage female. In this essay I want to specifically focus on the State of North Carolina, being that I live in this state.
One of the reasons why age of consent should be raised is because the age of 18 is seen as the age of maturity and is when an individual usually leaves the secondary school system. Once someone reach the current age of consent which is 16 they feel more untitled to partake in sexual activity, and this is when a most teenage pregnancies occur. By raising the age of consent to 18 this should postpone this decision for many at the tender age of
In Indiana, it is illegal to photograph or disseminate images of someone younger than 18 engaged sexual conduct, and to possess sexual images of someone younger than 16. However, it is a defense to prosecution if the texted images are only of the sender or recipient, the parties are not more than four years apart in age, the parties are in a dating relationship, and the sexting was consensual. Nevertheless this doesn’t apply if either party sent the image to anyone.Adults who sext with minors may be prosecuted under Indiana’s law against child exploitation, possession of child pornography, or disseminating harmful materials to a minor. These crimes are usually punished as felonies. Photographing or disseminating images of someone younger than 18 engaged sexual conduct is a Class C felony, and penalties include at least two (and
that is the age when you are considered and adult and have many rights and freedom.
According to my state laws the age of consent is 16 years of age, but
There are debates on whether or not the laws for statutory rape are strict enough. The age of consensual sex varies from state to state. In some states the age of consent is 16 while others start at the age of 17. Though many of these teens may be physically ready to engage in sex, many of them are not mentally prepared. In their article, “Enforce Statutory Rape Laws to Curb Teen Sex”, Kathleen Sylvester and Jonathan O’Connell talk about relationships between 12, 13 and 14 year old girls and sexually mature men who are inherently unequal, often coercive and almost always damaging. Many of these girls find themselves engaging in sexual activities with much older men. Until stricter laws are put into place, as well as parents explaining these
In most cases, 16 continues to be the age of consent, yet if the complainant is 14 or 15 and the accused is no older than 19 or 20, the complainant can consent in this situation. Be aware that days and months are included in the calculation when determining if there is less than a five year age difference between the two. An experienced attorney can be of assistance if there are any questions regarding sexual consent or any charge regarding a crime of a sexual nature.
The perspective offered by such longitudinal data sheds remarkable light on the "problem" of statutory rape, identifying for us key markers, as well as key actors, in the history of the law's enforcement and helping us to understand their roles in constructing the meaning of this crime over successive generations. ... The statutory rape codes have been used at various times to reinforce fathers' interests in their daughters' marriageability, to protect young women's chastity from seductive men, to control promiscuous or disease-laden adolescent females, to enhance child support collection efforts, to reduce teenage pregnancy, and to identify and punish sexual exploitation of teenagers. ... Given the constant state of jockeying, compromise and
Statutory rape refers to sexual relations involving someone below the "age of consent." People below the age of consent cannot legally consent to having sex. This means that sex with them, by definition, violates the law.
Statutory Rape is a very foggy law when it comes to the specifics and the crime can still be committed even if both people engaging in sexual acts are below the age of consent as well. “Statutory rape is a state sex crime that can be charged as a felony or misdemeanor offense and may be punishable by incarceration, fine, probation, and/or registry as a sex offender, depending on the state and circumstances of the incident” (Findlaw,1). 17-year old Alan Jepsen from Sheboygan, Wisconsin was at home playing videogames when the police barged in and handcuffed him
In addition, the charges for the same crime can differ so much even if the difference of age is insignificant. For example, if a sexual assault, that is specified as Statutory Rape, occurs in Nevada and the offender is under the age of 21, they will face the charge of up to one year, while if they are over 21 years of age, they face the charges of 1 to 5 years. The juvenile who
Statutory rape is not an easy term to define. It seems that the definition would be simple and would include someone older having sex with someone younger than the legal age. That leads us to what is the legal age? What difference in age is acceptable? Is it really the age of the person that dictates whether or not an individual is capable of making rational decisions about having intercourse? Are there special circumstances when using the term?
Although there is the “Romeo and Juliet Law”, which is in place to prevent serious criminal charges against teenagers who engage in consensual sex with others close to their own age. In Florida, there is an exemption for consensual sex when the minor is 14-17 years old and the defendant is no more than four years older. If the defendant meets certain eligibility requirements, the law will remove the requirement of registering as a sex offender. The terms of imprisonment and fines may still be
Several states have also participated in the “Romeo and Juliet Law “this law intention is to protect young sexual offenders who are close in age to their victims and engage in consensual sex ,from registering as sexual offenders. However Florida, have done this using a motion or petition process for registration relief, some have provided age-gap provisions. Some states has legalize certain sexual condition between minors, and /or those close in age to avoid not only registration requirement but to avoid but the criminal charge previously
Statutory rape describes sexual activity where one participating party is below the age of consent to engage in the sexual conduct. The term usually refers to adults engaging in sexual activities with minors under the age of consent; however, only a handful of jurisdictions recognize the actual words "statutory rape" in its legal code. Statutory rape differs from forcible rape because imposed force or threat is not present during the sexual acts. However, the laws presume that adult coerced the minor into having sex because a minor or mentally challenged are unsuitable to make their own decisions, according to the courts. Statutory rape differs from "child molestation," which is typically treated as a far more severe crime.