A 17 yr old who sleeps with a 15 yr old will get the same punishment as a 61 yr old who molests a 6 yr old?

Question

A young boy who was 17 slept with his 15 year old girlfriend and was charged with Statutory Rape, they are both minors. He will be forced to register as a sex offender

A greasy old 61 year old man who kidnapped and brutally raped a toddler will also recieve the SAME punishemnt as above,

Is this fair?

Answer 1

Of course that's not fair. That's why (in Missouri, at least) the first situation isn't even against the law.

Not to mention that if the 61 year old "brutally raped the toddler, then you have forcible rape in addition to the statutory rape, not to mention kidnapping, assault, and what ever other charges the prosecutor can come up with.

The end punishments would NOT be the same...

Answer 2

In both cases, the instigator was over the legal age of consent. 17 is over the legal age of consent in some states. A 15 yr old cannot consent to a sexual act in some states. In both cases the only charge brought against the instigator was statutory rape.

The fact that the punishment is the same is fair.

However, in the case against the 61 yr old....I'd be surprised if additional charges weren't filed considering that someone who brutally rapes a person can also be charged with multiple crimes on top of the rape.

Answer 3

3-5 years

Answer 4

No thats not fair, im speaking from experience too here i was 14 my b/f was 18 my parents could have taken him down, we kept it secret till i was 16 i wasnt on the pill i could have got pregnant but i was lucky i guess, i married him too. Im 32 now, and i still think if its consented to then its no offence, a 61 yr old with a 6 yr old is just pure and simple sick. xxx

Answer 5

No, the punishment would not be the same, because the charges would be very different.

Now, if you're really asking if I think that statutory rape laws should be abolished, then, no, I don't. However, I do think that parents should inform their children of these laws. Too many times people end up being charged and convicted because they didn’t know it was illegal (they thought if they were both minors, it was okay). I think it’s irresponsible parenting (merely my personal opinion) not to ensure that your children are aware of these laws. But, often the parents don’t know the laws themselves, and sometimes they do know the law, but simply don’t inform their kids (these are often parents who also refuse to discuss birth control with their children. Kind of the ‘if we don’t talk about it, they won’t do it’ philosophy).

Answer 6

Um, the 61 yr old will be found guilty of numerous offenses in addition to statutory rape, like kidnapping, assault, endangering a child, etc. He will almost certainly die in jail. The premise of your question is flawed.

Answer 7

No. That is taking things way too far.

In the old days, they just had a good old fashioned shotgun wedding.

The odd thing is that those two could end up married and when she is 30 and he is 32, he would still be labled as a sex offender.

Answer 8

It's the law as it stands. There is no middle ground. I don't think it's fair. There needs to be a second chance clause for the young caught in this situation. I have seen this set of circumstances abused by a mother who used it to rid herself of a disliked daughters boyfriend even though the daughter was promiscuous prior to that relationship.

Answer 9

No its retarded. I was 17 and my bf was 19 and we had to keep it a secret and im 20 now and we are married, and to think if my mom found out he'd be in prison, its retarded but they make that law because they think people under 18 can't make up there own mind and are coaxed by older people to have sex. Also most states if you are 2 years apart under age they can't charge you unless the guy is over 18 and the girl is under.

Answer 10

No, it's not fair at all, and that is why the laws pertaining to sexual offenses need to be overhauled. There should be different categories, based on things like the scenarios you have outlined in your question.