Dating age laws in minnesota

Minnesota Statutory Rape Laws: Ignorance of Age Is Not a Legal Defense

Most U. These laws make it illegal for anyone to engage in sexual activity with a minor who is below a certain age, even if the minor consents to the activity. Sadly, our criminal defense attorneys in Minnesota have seen many defendants shocked by their charges because they had no idea the individual they were intimate with was underage. In Minnesota, the age of consent is 16 years old. This means that any sexual activity with a person under the age of 16 is considered statutory rape , regardless of whether or not the minor consents to the activity. The law is in place to protect minors from being taken advantage of by adults who may use their age and experience to manipulate and exploit them. This is not the case in Minnesota.

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The so-called Romeo and Juliet laws exist in jurisdictions all over the United States and allow people to legally have consensual sex with minors when they are not more than a given number of years older, usually four years or less. But Minnesota does not and anybody accused of a statutory rape crime will want to speak to a Minnesota criminal defense attorney. The result is that Minnesota has an age of consent that is 16 years of age, meaning that a person who is only a couple of years older, such as 18 years of age, could face statutory rape charges if they engage in consensual sex with the minor. Statutory rape laws usually intend to protect alleged victims from being taken advantage of by older adults who may coerce consent, so the idea that a young adult could face prosecution for being in a relationship with a younger person disturbs many people. While a minor who is between 13 and 16 years of age can lawfully consent to sex with a person two years older than them, an adult who engages in sexual conduct with a child four years younger can face charges of statutory rape. In Minnesota, this criminal offense is known as criminal sexual conduct, and the crime has five degrees. A crime is first-degree criminal sexual misconduct if an alleged victim is less than 13 years of age and an alleged offender is more than 3 years older.

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This guide is compiled by staff at the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library on a topic of interest to state legislators. It introduces the topic and points to sources for further research. It is not intended to be exhaustive.

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Office of the Revisor of Statutes

Sex crimes are extremely serious issues. When someone is accused and convicted of a sex crime, it will permanently affect their life. Understandably, juries and judges tend to be very harsh on sex crimes defendants during sentencing. Statutory rape brings about some seriously dark connotations. In reality, statutory rape laws mainly represent an inability of the victim to consent to sex legally; however, they do not generally involve violent rape charges.

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