When the Parties are Both Minors: The "Romeo and Juliet" Exception However, if Tony were to rape Jen (force her to have sex against her will), he would have no protection under the law even if the two are married. This is because California has a marital exemption to the California statutory rape laws.
Minors are legally incapable of giving consent to having sex so for example, if Jen, a 16 year old willingly has sex with Tony, her 23 year old boyfriend, Tony can be charged with rape, since Jen is not legally capable of giving consent in the first place.īut if Jen and Tony are married and living in California, Tony need not fear criminal charges for having consensual sex with Jen.
The marital defense is a remnant of the marital rape exemption. Statutory Rape Marital ExceptionĬalifornia has a marital exemption for statutory rape that allows married people to have consensual sex even if their ages would prohibit it if they were not married. Defenses to a Statutory Rape Chargeĭefendants charged with statutory rape have the usual defenses available to all criminal defendants, such as "Someone else committed this crime," or "The alleged conduct did not occur." One or more of the following defenses may also apply. State law requires, in addition to the applicable fines and prison time, that people convicted of certain sexual crimes (including certain instances of statutory rape) must register as sex offenders. This order is discretionary when the defendant has a single conviction (the court can impose it, but can also decide not to), but it is mandatory when the defendant has two or more convictions. Typically, the charges and potential punishments get more serious the younger the victim.įor misdemeanors, punishment can include probation, a fine of as much as $1,000, up to 364 days in jail, or some combination of these penalties.Ī felony conviction will incur at least 16 months (and up to eight years) in prison and can also result in probation, up to $10,000 in fines, or both.Ĭonvicted offenders can also be ordered to undergo chemical castration.
#AGE OF CONSENT IN CALIFORNIA CODE#
Penal Code § 288 (2018).) Potential Penalties for Statutory Rapeĭepending on the ages of the parties, and other factors, statutory rape crimes can be tried as misdemeanors or felonies in California. This offense also includes contact between a minor who is 14 or 15 and a defendant who is at least ten years older than the minor. Lewd and lascivious acts upon a child involve sexual contact between a minor who is 13 or younger and a defendant of any age. Sexual penetration includes sexual intercourse or penetration (however slight) between a minor who is under 14 and a defendant who is at least ten years older than the minor. Unlawful oral copulation includes oral sex between a minor who is 17 or younger and a defendant of any age. Unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor involves sexual intercourse or penetration (however slight) between a minor who is 17 or younger and a defendant of any age. The law is complex and changes regularly. If you are trying to determine the legality of any kind of conduct, make sure to consult an experienced criminal defense attorney. The information in this article provides an overview of the law relating to statutory rape. Penalties depend on the ages of the defendant and victim, as described below. Statutory rape is prosecuted under California's rape and sexual assault laws. Assaults of a sexual nature may also be charged under the state's sexual battery, assault, and child enticement and abuse laws. Of course, rape that does involve force or an assault is illegal in California and prosecuted as forcible rape. Though statutory rape does not require that the prosecutor prove an assault, it is still rape.
The age of consent can vary among states, and some states differentiate between consensual sex between minors who are close in age (for example, two teenagers of the same age), as opposed to sex between a minor and a much older adult. Their incapacity is written into the statute-hence the term, "statutory" rape. Statutory rape laws are premised on the assumption that minors are incapable of giving informed consent to sexual activities. Those who break the law have committed statutory rape. In California, it is illegal for an adult (someone 18 or older) to have sex with a minor (someone younger than 18), even if the sex is consensual.
0 kommentar(er)
