The Problems with Statutory Rape

998 Words2 Pages

Many issues have come up with the laws surrounding statutory rape. Although the laws are in place to help people, many people see them as unfair and they believe that there are changes that could be made to help improve these laws. A major problem with statutory rape laws is that each state has a different law. To help improve statutory rape laws, all states should work together to have a set of country-wide laws, so that the states all have the same laws. With a few minor improvements, the statutory rape laws would be problem free.
The statutory rape laws in the United States are in place to protect adolescents from rape. The dictionary definition of statutory rape is “sexual intercourse with a minor.” The difference between rape and statutory rape is that rape is an adult sexually abusing an adult, and statutory rape is an adult sexually abusing a minor. Statutory rape can occur when an adult and a minor have sex, even if it is voluntary on both sides. (North Carolina General Assembly) In each state, there is an age of consent, which is the age that a person can legally consent to sexual intercourse. There is also an age differential, which is amount of years that the victim and the offender can be apart. In most states, statutory rape is referred to as “sexual offense of a person who is 13, 14 or 15 years old. (“Summary of Current State”) In the laws surrounding rape in North Carolina, the laws that pertain to statutory rape are referred to as “Rape of a child; adult offender.” This offense is considered a class B1 felony. This offense does not cover sexual acts, such as sexual contact, or oral sex. The law that pertains to statutory rape for sexual acts is a would be a first degree sexual offense. (North Carolin...

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...al Abuse 22.7 (2013): 00000 858-877. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
Roth, Norah M. "It's Not Rape-Rape: Statutory Rape Classification Under The Armed Career 00000 Criminal Act." St. John's Law Review 85.4 (2011): 1653-1680. Academic Search Complete. 00000 Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
Sahl, Daniel, and Jennifer Reid Keene. "The Effects Of Age, Authority, And Gender On Perceptions Of 00000 Statutory Rape Offenders." Journal Of Interpersonal Violence 27.18 (2012): 3701-3722. 00000 Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
"Statutory Rape Provision Violated Minor's Federal Constitutional Rights." Child Law Practice 30.6 00000 (2011): 82-83.Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
"Summary of Current State Laws." Statutory Rape: A Guide to State Laws and Reporting 00000 Requirements:. US Department of Health and Human Services, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2013.

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