Utterly Meaningless

DISTURBING ON SO MANY LEVELS

Filed at 9:33 am under by dcobranchi

Here’s a zero tolerance story that is difficult to get a handle on. Two kids, age 12 (female) and 14 (male) had (consensual) sex in a school bathroom. The boy kissed and told and the girl got upset, eventually telling a teacher. The school responded by suspending both and sending them to an alternative school. I’m ok with the suspension. The alternative school seems a bit over-the-top. It gets much worse, though. The boy is now under criminal investigation for sexual assault. The age of consent in Texas is 17, so how is this statutory rape? Or, how come only he would be charged? After all, both are underage. Very confusing.

2 comments »

2 Responses to “DISTURBING ON SO MANY LEVELS”

Comment by Darby November 30th, 2003 at 10:01 am

What gets me is the mother’s comment that she forgot to tell her daughter she could say no. Huh?? That’s an incredibly weak response to the fact that her daughter was so lonely and desperate and had so little self-esteem that she was willing to agree to anything any other child suggested so long as they pay some attention to her. But, yes I agree it’s a double standard. The boy wasn’t of an age to consent, either.

Comment by Skip Oliva November 30th, 2003 at 1:39 pm

The fact that the boy was older probably factored into the decision to prosecute. If the girl had been substantially older than the boy, the outcome might have been reversed, though I wouldn’t bet the farm on that.