what can happen if a girl lied to me and...?

Question

ok im a 20 year old male and i live in texas. i started dating a 17 year old girl back in august and she needed a way to talk to me so i bought her a cell phone. we texted each other and called each other and told each other we loved and missed each other. well she said she lost the cell phone and i was cool with it so i bought her another one so we can continue talking. she said her parents were cool with it. well one day my house gets raided by law enforcement and they take my cell phone her cell phone and my computers and stuff because the girl really happened to be 14. she lied to me and i know its not a defense and now i feel like im screwed. the first phone was tooken away by her parents and i had no idea. the second one was tooken by law enforcement and they came and took all mine. there was absolutely nothing sexual related on the phone but there were messages saying i miss you baby and i love you baby. what law am i breaking or what do you think they are going to try and do

ok youre right i should have confirmed, my mistake but what charges can they get on me. we never had sex or any type of contact in that nature

ok absolutely no kiddie porn just the phones they took had text messages saying i miss you and i love you and i wont lie yest we did meet up a couple times but not for long. more like a hug and thats it. would they still need some sort of statement from the girl saying yes we did meet up?

Answer 1

If you never met with the girl, I dont see why they even bothered to raid your place. She represented she was 17. I'm assuming that she is above the age of consent. Even if that is not the age of consent, saying you love someone or you miss someone is not inappropriate. Sounds to me as if someone has parents with a little pull.

Now, I'm not saying it's appropriate to communicate with 14 year olds about things that might be sexual in nature. Remember, it's the appearance of impropriety you are worried about. But usually, a sting like this involves a cop posing as a 13 year old girl or so, and the person responding is trying to hook up with someone who he believes is 13. The crime is completed with the meeting that turns out to be with the cops. We've all seen the show.

In your case, the parents probably got wind of the situation and the phones and rightfully wanted to protect their daughter from someone who could be an online predator. You said you started dating her. Does that mean you met with her or were you dating her on line? If you met her, you broke the law. That means you had to have some physical contact with her, and that you either knew or should have known that she was 14. The fact that she lied to you about her age isnt going to help you there. If you didnt meet with her, from what your saying, you are in the clear.

HOWEVER, they are looking at every pixal in your computer for evidence of kiddy porn and the like. You had better hope you dont have any. Or communications with other minors that could put you in the jackpot. Fact is, if you DO have any such material, you deserve to get busted. The charges would depend upon what, if any material they find.

EDIT FOR ASKER:

Will they need her testimony? It depends what else they have. Pictures of you together, witnesses and the like? That would mean they do not need a statement from her to prove you met her. Dont forget, even a hug could be construed to be a harmful touching. She's 14 man. As for whether she will or will not give them a statement? I dont know. But she's 14 and will be under tremendous pressure to tell them what they want to hear. NOT necessarily the truth. I dont know if she is able to withstand that pressure or not. The fact is, you lost your ability to claim you didnt know her age when you met her. And they are going to try to drag all the information out of her they can.

Bottom line is you screwed up. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you didnt do anything inappropriate with her. But in truth, you probably did. Your definition of what is harmless is probably not the same as the law. If you were with this girl at this tender age, you have commited a serious crime.

Answer 2

How can you not yet be a minor?
Anyways if there was nothing sexual maybe interfering with a minor thats always a good charge, maybe you should get a lawyer

Answer 3

Ignorance of fact excuses no one. You must have confirmed first that the age of the girl you are communicating with in order to be clear of any criminal liability. Anyway, prove that the girl lied to you and use it as a mitigating circumstance.