Teenagers and Many Adults Plead Ignorance of Sex Laws

It's not unheard of for a teenager to find himself listed as a sex offender for having consensual sex with another teenager. They simply don't know that it might be illegal in their state. Then there are teenagers who try to solicit sex from adults, claiming that if they consent it can't be rape. They have zero understanding that the adult can and often will be charged with statutory rape regardless of the consent involved.

This simply isn't covered in sex education classes most of the time. The basics of sex, how to have safe sex, and good touch/bad touch ideas are covered. But consent, the law, how it can affect them, these are ignored and often the only way a child, or in many cases, an adult finds out, is when the law is broken. Now before I continue with this article I'd like to point out one thing. I'm not the type of person to be attracted to minors, I don't believe an adult should be engaging in sexual activity with a minor and so believe in making sure you're aware of risks in any situation.

Having said that a 19 year old dating a 16 year old or a 17year old and a 15 year old can still find themselves in a lot of serious legal trouble if they are caught. And wouldn't we rather be aware of what our children are doing? We're also not, generally, the type of people to be shocked at a 2, 3, or 4 year age difference for late teens and early twenties, yet these are exactly the type of age gaps that can create legal problems for a teenager. Legal troubles that could leave one, or in rare cases, both teens labeled as sex offenders for the rest of their lives.

One man, J. Tom Morgan, has taken steps to help prevent problems in his state, Georgia. He's written a book called "Ignorance Is No Defense: A Teenagers Guide to Georgia Law." Which is due out soon. The title says it all. Ignorance is no defense when it comes to the law. Just because you didn't know it was, at 17, illegal to have oral sex with a consenting 15 year old that you've been dating for x amount of time, doesn't prevent you from going to jail for it, and carrying the label of a sex offender for the rest of your life, right down to being on the registered sex offenders list.

It's not just the schools that are failing to provide this information to teens and young adults, but parents as well. All too often we, as parents, rely solely on the school system to teach our children. But it's not just their job, it's ours as well. With more and more teenagers being caught in this trap, one we, as adults set up to help protect them, isn't it time we, as adults took steps to educate not just our children, but ourselves on just what the laws in our state are when it comes to sex?

Just some food for thought.