I’m all for prosecuting men who take advantage of girls for sex, but this is a step to far. A 19 year old has been sentenced to 11 months in jail for the statutory ‘rape’ of a 16 year old. They were dating at the time, or texting at least. (Do Irish people really date?)
They had consensual sex in some rural spot near Mullingar. Her father arrived on the scene (very Irish Hollywood), is understandably upset and calls the guards to prosecute his daughter’s boyfriend.
I can understand his fury, but it’s not the responsibility of the guards nor the legal systems to deal with this. It’s a parental responsibility. This lad hardly sounds like an angel but is it right that he has a criminal record and a place on the sex offenders registry for life for having consexual sex with his girlfriend. His girlfriend who was 16 and three-quaters at the time and so 3 months off the legal age. Is this the purpose of the Irish legal system? I think not.
It’s high time these ridiculous laws were removed from the statue books. High time, girls were taught to stand up for themselves and live with their choices and that angry fathers realized that using the judiciary to punish their daughter’s boyfriends is both unjust and counter productive.
I agree with you to a certain extent but where do we draw the line? If a 14-year-old agrees to sex with her 17-year-old boyfriend, is that legal? Then again I know there is a vast difference between a 16-year-old having sex, and someone aged 14. I think the judge should have thrown this out, though; a 16-year-old is of an advanced enough age to make her own decisions, and it seems obvious to me that, for whatever reason, her parents had an issue with the guy involved.
I think my point was the regulating consensual sex is ridiculous. Whatever the age difference, it’s wrong to criminalize men for consensual sexual activity, provided that the girl involved is free and able to consent i.e. not drugged or drunk. And, abuse is a whole other area.
I don’t think that this guy was right to do what he did, but I don’t think a criminal record is a fair punishment nor a good use of our limited judicial resources.
Thanks for your comment – my first