AgeOfConsent
Can you become a sex offender for consensual underage sex?
The age of consent is designed to prevent adults from taking advantage of children, and in most cases the law serves its intended purpose. However, criminalizing sexual contact with a minor can also have some unintended consequences - such as the puzzling situation that arises when two minors who engage in consensual sex can wind up being branded, under the law, as both sex offenders and victims for their actions.
While such situations are rare, over half of states have age of consent laws that criminalize sexual contact between two minors, not just a minor and an adult over the Age of Consent. Several cases have made high-profile news in recent years, such as the story of a thirteen year old California girl who was convicted with statutory rape after having consensual sex with her 12-year-old boyfriend.
Another recent incident involved Virgil McCranie, an 18-year-old Florida resident who had consensual sex with his 14-year-old girlfriend (who he later married). The girls' father, who disapproved of his daughter's partner, called the police and Virgil was convicted under Florida law of lewd and lascivious behavior and forced to register as a sex offender. After years of losing jobs and apartments due to his sex offender status, Virgil was finally removed from the list after his case was reviewed and a pardon signed by the Governor of Florida.
Prosecutors recognize that branding minors for life for consensually engaging in intercourse with one another is generally not in the best interests of the community, so such cases are rarely actively pursued by the police. Anecdotal evidence has shown that most cases that are prosecuted (including cases in which one partner is slightly older than the Age of Consent) are generally opened when a disgruntled family member or friend reports the activity to the police.
However, it is of vital importance that minors - and their parents or guardians - understand the very real legal consequences that can emerge for violating age of consent law. The map below lists states in which underage teenagers can be convicted and forced to register as a sex offender for life because they engaged in consensual sex with another minor. In these states, and other states in which a Close-In-Age Exemption does not exist, any individual who is over the age of consent - even if they are only a year or two older than their partner - can also be convicted of statutory rape and forced to register as a sex offender.
To learn about the laws that affect underage sex in your state, see Age of Consent and Statutory Rape Laws By State.
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