What about a mandatory ten year sentence for an 18-year-old having sex with a 15-year-old?

If you're asking me, I think the law should include an age difference requirement for statutory rape, as it does in many states.

He wasn't in for 10 years. I bet we hear from this guy again.

Let me ask you a question, 6. It's of a personal nature.

You're 24 now, if your profile is correct.
At what age did you first have sex?
Was it consentual?
How old was the other party?


How is this different in your mind from a teacher who sexually molests a student?
How can a 12 year old know what they are getting into? A 12 year old is generally in the FIFTH grade!!

Imagine you have a child in the 5th grade.
You're saying it's ok for the teacher to have sex with your child as long as they end up married for 30 years?

I think comparing then and now is a bad idea.

OC: If I could guarentee for a fact that my 5th grade would spend the rest of his life happy and in love and emotionally well, then sure, go at it.

Of course, there's no way to guarentee it. There is no possible way to guarentee anything.

People used to get married at 12-14 all the time. *gasp* everyone must have been a monster back then. I'm so glad we're aware of it now.

Not of their own free will. Many if not most of those were "arranged" marriages where the female of the couple was assigned a husband. Today, men ask dads for their daughter's hand in marriage as a courtesy (if at all). Back then, the dad actually made the decision. You don't really think that those marriages were actual 'boy meets girl and asks her for her hand and then daddy throws them a big wedding' did you???

Those 12-year old girl getting married things were often social relationships between families and not simply 'husband-and-wife' things.

Why its wrong is self evident: a child cannot be assumed to have the faculty to adequately deploy reason over emotion in personal or business relationships requiring either a commitment, an understanding of the risk/reward or the consequences arising from the relationship/agreement. Neither can the child/young adult be expected to assume full responsibility for the consequences of the relationship or commitment. Enough minors have been taken to the cleaners such that a law banning the practice was finally enacted.

Did you even consider the consequences if he had gotten her pregnant. I think its well within the purview of the law to forbid relationships where one of the parties is clearly not able to support a child emotionally or financially.

Repeal the law, watch the atrocites mount and then you shall have the answer to your question.

All right. One more case doesn't make an epidemic, but holy cow. Don't these people read the news?

This one gets high stupidity marks for having her two year old in the back seat while doing it in the front.

Teacher Has Sex with Pupil While Baby in Car

You're talking about things which have little or any relevancy to age. How would you write such a law? How would you enforce it?

But you can't. No one can. The child in question's parents can't, either. Out of all the marriages that end in divorce, (2 out of 3 I think the latest statistic is running), do you really think they'll make it? You're willing to gamble a 5th grader's life on it?

Exactly my point! You said, "if I could guarentee for a fact my 5th grader ..... then sure, go at it" but you can't. So is it no longer "sure go at it"?


People used to get their daughters pregnant all the time back then, too. Just because something was "back then" doesn't make it ok.

The laws are already written - every state has one - an age minimum for marriage. I was basically providing some rationale for the existing laws not proposing anything new. Sounds like I didn't make my point very well.

All I'm saying is there are plenty of people over the age of 18 who aren't able to support a child, financially or emotionally. What's the law supposed to do about them?

Nothing. Unless abuse is involved. And I don't have that big a problem with financial deprivation. Poverty doesn't kill people in America (generally speaking) - heck, some of us were poor growing up. Emotional deprivation, however, ruins lives and is difficult to repair even in adults. But, that is not an area for legislative intervention until and unless it results in abuse.

Here we go again...
 

Five students.

Teacher in West Virginia accused of sex abuse.

Yikes!

http://www.wowktv.com/images/0303050...oods_toni3.jpg

Now that IS abuse. :scream: