Age of consent in the United States

[108] Until the late 20th century many states had provisions requiring that the teenage girl must be of "chaste character" in order for the sexual conduct to be considered criminal.

[114] On June 26, 2003, both heterosexual and homosexual sodomy became legal (between non-commercial, consenting adults in private) in all U.S. states, District of Columbia, and territories, under the U.S. Supreme Court decision Lawrence v.

2423(a)} forbids transporting a minor (defined as under 18) in interstate or foreign commerce with the intent of engaging in criminal sexual acts in which a person can be charged.

This subsection is ambiguous on its face and seems to apply only when the minor is transported across state or international lines to a place where the conduct is already illegal to begin with.

Although legislation tends to reflect general societal attitudes regarding male versus female ages of consent, Richard Posner notes in his Guide to America's Sex Laws: The U.S. Supreme Court has held that stricter rules for males do not violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution, on the theory that men lack the disincentives (associated with pregnancy) that women have, to engage in sexual activity, and the law may thus provide men with those disincentives in the form of criminal sanctions.

§ 2260) makes it a federal crime to possess or create sexually explicit images of any person under 18 years of age regardless of consent.

[a] Depending upon the relevant status of forces agreement, United States service members are also subject to the local criminal laws of the host nation for acts committed off-post.

[110] The laws of Georgia, Missouri, North Carolina,[127] Mississippi, and Tennessee specifically refer to "statutory rape", with each state defining it differently.

The State Legislature passed Act 2010-497 making it a crime for any school employee to have any sexual relations with a student under the age of 19.

Any individual convicted of these offenses, regardless if they received prison time or not, will have to register as a Sex Offender for the remainder of their life.

(CA Penal code § 286) There are separate crimes for committing any lewd or lascivious act with a person under the age of 14.

[127] In the 1990s Governor of California Pete Wilson stated that there was a trend of men in their mid-to-late 20s having sex with and impregnating teenage girls around 14 years of age and that the statutory rape laws needed to be enforced to prevent this.

For example: However consensual, sexual intercourse within the 3-year age difference by a minor 13 through 17 years old may, upon a complaint, lead the Connecticut Superior Court to a "family with service needs" finding.

A guilty verdict would result in conviction of a Class B felony sex offense, with a mandatory minimum of 9 months and maximum 20 years imprisonment.

Similarly, it is a defense to the Class B misdemeanor of "sexual abuse in the third degree" (KRS § 510.130), defined as subjecting another person to non-consensual sex, if the lack of consent was due solely to incapacity by age, the victim is 14 or 15 years old, and the actor is under 18.

In May 1979 the New Jersey Legislature passed a bill sponsored by Christopher Jackman, the assembly speaker, changed the age of consent to 13.

These do not subject a person to more punishment than the crimes listed above but provide only a gimmick for prosecutors to avoid the requirement that an individual sex act be specified in a rape indictment.

However, there exists a close-in-age exception where a minor 13 or older can consent to sex as long as their partner is also at least 13 but less than 18 years old.

[206] Under current Pennsylvania law, teenagers aged 13, 14 and 15 may or may not be able to legally engage in sexual activity with partners who are less than 4 years older.

[207] In December 2011 the Pennsylvania Legislature passed an amendment stating that an employee of a school who engages in sexual relations with any student or athletic player under the age of 18 may receive a third-degree felony charge.

Historically Pennsylvania prosecutors were only allowed to issue misdemeanor charges such as corruption of minors against teachers and coaches who had sex with 16 and 17-year-old students.

[208] Under Pennsylvania law, a defendant is strictly liable for the offense of rape, a felony of the first degree, when the complainant is 12 or younger.

Notwithstanding § 23A-42-2, a charge brought pursuant to this section may be commenced at any time before the victim becomes age twenty-five or within seven years of the commission of the crime, whichever is longer.

Though there is a specific law targeting "sexual performance", which requires a visual representation (like a video or a part in a play).

[224] In 2003, Helen Giddings, a Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives, first authored the anti student-teacher sex bill but only intended for it to take effect if the student is 17 or younger.

Shortly after the law passed, a teacher engaged in sexual intercourse with her 18-year-old student, and a Texas court refused to indict her.

In response to this law, Houston lawyer Dick DeGuerin stated "Unless there's real strong evidence of a teacher trading sex for grades or using improper influence, then it's a statute that is really open to abuse.

Section 18.2-63 states in part: If any person carnally knows, without the use of force, a child thirteen years of age or older but under fifteen years of age, such person shall be guilty of ... felony ... For the purposes of this section, (i) a child under the age of thirteen years shall not be considered a consenting child and (ii) "carnal knowledge" includes the acts of sexual intercourse, cunnilingus, fellatio, analingus, anal intercourse, and animate and inanimate object sexual penetration.Consensual sex where one partner is 15, 16 or 17 and the other is over 18 is a class 1 misdemeanor.

Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli asked the U.S. Supreme Court to do a rehearing, arguing that the state's sodomy laws may still constitutionally apply to 16- and 17-year-olds.

§ 1700–1709 Virgin Islands Code and appeals records Francis vs. VI NOTE: "mistake of fact as to the victim's age is not a defense".