Statutory Rape
A fifteen-year-old killed girl herself after have sexual relations with eighteen-year-old Austin Renaud. The boy ,charged with the statutory rape of Phoebe Prince, pleaded not guilty in Hampshire Superior Court. Prince hanged herself after being bullied by Renaud’s ex-girlfriend and four other students. Austin’s attorney claimed that the boy tried desperately to help Prince as the bullying escalated, but was unsuccessful at preventing suicide by Phoebe Prince (Associated Press).
Nevertheless, is it the boy’s fault that Phoebe Prince committed suicide? If Phoebe Prince had consensual sexual orientations with Renaud should he be guilty of statutory rape? In general, most matters concerning statutory rape usually conclude to be the fault of an older male involved in sexual relations with a younger female. Statutory rape laws are patronizing to girls and discriminatory against boys.
Statutory rape laws state that it is unlawful and illegal for an adult who is legally eighteen or over the age of eighteen to engage in sexual relations with a minor. Every state has a statutory rape law in some form. These laws usually confine men for what could be consensual sexual activity with minors who are close to the age of majority (Colb).
The Essay on Statutory Rape 2
Statutory rape is defined as sexual intercourse with a minor. The laws concerning statutory rape were established because it was considered foolish to have sex or perform any sexual acts without being married. It acted as a chastity belt protecting the virtue of young women. These laws depicted men as the habitual guilty party. This is one reason that raises the question of statutory rape laws ...
Statutory rape laws vary from state to state in regards to the age of consent. The national average is the age of sixteen (Burrell).
Statutory rape laws have a past. The main purpose was to guard the virginity of young maidens against seduction by unscrupulous cads. To give up one’s “virtue” to a man who was unwilling to pay with his hand in marriage was foolish and presumptively a product of youthful, poor judgment (Colb).
Men are unethically treated when it comes to statutory rape cases. In comparison to women, men are basically discriminated against. Eighteenth Century British Jurist Sir Matthew Hale was convinced that rape “is an accusation easily to be made and hard to be proved, and harder to be defended by the party accused, though never so innocent” (qtd. in Colb).
Men always seem to get the short stick when they are accused of statutory rape. “As long as there was sexual intercourse and an underage victim, the jury can convict” (Colb).
According to the U.S. Supreme Court, prosecutors have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that every element of a crime is constitutionally valid. Removing the “force” element of rape leaves intercourse and the age of those involved. This seems okay with a presumption that the “force” element of rape is established without the prosecutor’s having to prove it and the defense not even having an option of disproving it. Presumptions basically support the fact that even a fully consensual sexual encounter will be subjected to statutory rape laws (Colb).
We have doubts about the competence of a minor to “consent” in a meaningful way to sexual activity because of her youth; She won’t appreciate the physical and emotional consequences of her decision including a chance for creating offspring (Colb).
What permits legislatures the discretion to enact such laws, ultimately, is the fact that consensual sex with minors in a not a constitutionally protected activity (Colb).
These laws are legal because they simply are not covered or discussed in the Constitution of the United States. Young men in particular are targeted by these laws as in the case with Renaud and Prince. “A statutory rape conviction as an adult can mean jail or prison time, and the requirement that they register as sex offenders for the rest of their lives” (Burrell).
The Term Paper on Rape Shield Law Sexual Victim Women
In the 1970's, under pressure from feminist activists, lawyers, and legislators, most states changed their rape laws to ease the emotional burden of rape victims who testified in court. They had found that, for many women, going through the legal process was as painful as the rape itself. No longer did a woman have to show up in the court with broken bones and missing teeth to be taken seriously. ...
Statutory rape laws are unfair to men. In the case that an underage female “consents” to having sexual relations with an adult male and that adult male is charged with statutory rape, a sex offender charge being held against him for the rest of his life is immoral and unfair. Some statistics show that more than ninety-nine percent of the offenders of female statutory rape victims were male between the years of 1996 and 2000 (Troup-Leasure and Snyder).
These rape laws clearly hold men accountable for the design of the majority of statutory rape laws put in order mainly to protect women and to put their male cohorts in jail. The vast majority of statutory rapes involved victims and offenders of opposite sexes. Male offenders were involved in almost all statutory rape incidents with female victims (more than ninety-nine percent) (Troup-Leasure and Snyder).
Age Relations of Male Offenders and Female Victims

(Troup-Leasure and Snyder).
Females, on the other hand, are patronized by statutory rape laws. Even when consulting historic facts about these laws, women are believed to be young, helpless creatures who are not able to make their own decisions. The history of these laws state that they are to protect the virginity of young maidens. A lot of feminists favor these laws because they combat the sexual use of young girls (Colb).
A good point is made when today, in modern society, revival of the old history of protecting maidens from corrupting their “virtue” is brought up. Why, otherwise, should girls who are sexually attracted to men be considered the men’s victims rather than participants in a mutually gratifying activity (Colb)? Women are thrown into some sort of spot light when a man is accused of committing statutory rape against them. This is so because if a truly consensual sexual activity has taken place then there would be no victims and legal action would not be required (Colb).
This is a key element juries use to determine with a defendant is innocent or guilty. Young girls may represent a substantial portion of rape victims, perhaps because they are vulnerable and have not yet become sufficiently suspicious of the people around them (Colb).
The Essay on Martial Rape Women Marital Sexual
Marital Rape "When she says NO, it's rape... even when she's married to him"Every woman has the right to control her own body and to make decisions about having sex, using birth control, becoming pregnant and having children. She does not lose these rights if she marries." These quotes were taken from Stopping Sexual Assault in Marriage published by the Center for Constitutional Rights Much of the ...
In modern day society, statutory rape laws play a role in protecting young girls from actual rapists (Colb).
“Though a statutory rape charge would not require proof of force or coercion, feminists observed, young girls were (and may continue to be) especially vulnerable to being raped by adults in their lives (Colb).
Convictions makes it easier to prosecute and deter real rapists who count on jury skepticism about acquaintance rape allegations (Colb).
North Carolina in particular has specific statutory rape laws. A lot of states refuse to call statutory rape “statutory rape.” Some states call it sexual assault, sexual battery, or sexual abuse. North Carolina on the contrary does define the crime as statutory rape, nothing more, nothing less. The age of consent in North Carolina is sixteen. Adults can be charged with statutory rape if they engage with anyone younger than sixteen and are at least six years older. Spouses cannot charge each other with statutory rape because North Carolina’s statutory rape laws state that you cannot be charged if you are married to your partner. You can however be charged with you engage in vaginal intercourse with a minor. If someone is between four and seven years older than a minor who is between the ages of thirteen and fifteen they can be charged with statutory rape in the state of North Carolina. Both cases are considered felonies. Punishment could lead to civil duties and penalties and more than likely jail (Nina).
All in all, as in the case of Renaud and Prince, men are discriminated against when it comes to statutory rape laws. Women are patronized because of their historical and current role in society. Feminists in modern day society push for statutory rape laws to be upheld and used against males in cases of sexual activity where young females were involved. Past reports prove that men are the main offenders in statutory rape cases. Ninety-nine percent of offenders in comparison with their female victims were men. Usually, the case of the male offender depends on the state in which he committed the so called “rape.” If a minor is below the age of consent in the state and is at least seven years younger than their partner in a sexual encounter that is considered statutory rape. Different states, however, have different ages at which minors reach and are legally able to consent to sexual activity with a legal adult eighteen or older. If a minor is below the consent age they are considered unable to make good judgment in regards to sexual activity with an adult and cannot legally defend a person above the legal age limit by saying they consented to the activity in which the two persons participated. North Carolina has exact laws that declare the activity in which the two person engage as felonies and is labeled “statutory rape,” not sexual assault, sexual battery, or sexual abuse. Statutory rape laws discriminate highly against men and patronize women because adult males engage in more sexual activity with young females than the other way around. The men are found more responsible for the activities that take place and women “victims” find sympathy.
The Dissertation on Comparing Freedom of Expression in the Statutory Law and the Sharia Law
Getting in touch with media law during the first semester of my Masters gave me a sense of the importance of law in general because it consists of acts and articles which organise most issues in the human’s life in a way that protects ethics and morals. Regardless of the hypocrisy and double-standards of the countries which raise high the slogan of Human Rights, I liked the Human Rights ...
Works Cited
Associated Press. “March Trial Likely in Statutory Rape Case.” The Boston Globe 27
Oct. 2010. 27 Oct. 2010 .
Burrell, Jackie. “Teens, Sex, and the Law.” About.com 02 Nov. 2010 .
Colb, Sherry F. “The Pros and Cons of Statutory Rape.” CNN Justice. 13 Feb. 2004.
Turner Broadcasting System. 27 Oct 2010 .
Nina. “North Carolina Statutory Rape Laws.” Weblog post. Labor Law Talk BLOG.
21 Oct. 2006. LaborLawTalk.com. 02 Nov. 2010 .
Troup-Leasure, Karyl and Howard N. Snyder. “Statutory Rape Known to Law
Enforcement.” Juvenile Justice Bulletin Aug. 2005. 02 Nov. 2010 .
Dear Professor Parker,
I cannot say that this was my favorite paper to write thus far but I’m not very sure of anyone who loves writing research papers. I did my best to keep a positive outlook on how I perceived the project, however, and I believe I did an acceptable, and hopefully outstanding job. I spent a good amount of time looking up citations and making sure that I was citing my authors correctly. I know sometimes research papers have visuals so I included a small graph in mine. I had a hard time finding certain sources, however, that would benefit my paper and say what I needed to say. I don’t feel that there was an abundant amount of information about statutory rape as there were just articles on specific incidents throughout the world wide web. My claim in the paper was this: Statutory rape laws are patronizing to girls and discriminatory against boys. I picked this topic because I was interested in it and I sincerely believe that men are held accountable for the majority of sexual encounters and that standards for statutory rape laws are overrated in regards to women and their past and current role in society.
The Essay on Statutory Rape Laws Are Unjust
In the face of unjust laws, I believe that civil disobedience is mandatory. I have a scenario to defend my argument. I introduce to you Stan Lippy. Stan is a 19 year old student at Louisiana State University and he loves his girlfriend. Unfortunately, she is a 17 year old high school student with over-protective parents. Stan and Lacey s relationship made two years this past Valentine s Day. ...
Sincerely,
Sarah Shufelt
Shufelt
Female Age:
7-13
14
15
16
17
Offender Age
Less than 18
32%
16%
13%
2%
1%
18-20
30%
43%
38%
28%
22%
21-24
14%
21%
24%
28%
29%
25 and greater
24%
20%
25%
42%
48%
