STATUTORY RAPE

In Missouri, it is a crime for an adult to engage in sexual intercourse with a minor, regardless if the minor was a consenting participant. For this reason, the law states that a person can be charged with statutory rape in the first degree if he or she has, or attempts to have, “sexual intercourse with another person who is less than 14 years old.” Statutory rape is a strict liability crime such that the intent of the alleged defendant and the consent of the alleged victim are irrelevant. Roussel v. State (App. S.D. 2010) 314 S.W.3d 398.

If the offender was at least 21 years old when he or she engaged in sexual intercourse with a minor under the age of 17, he or she could be charged with statutory rape in the second degree. Given that this is considered to be a statutory offense, the prosecution does not need to prove that the defendant used force. An individual cannot legally provide consent until he or she has reached the age of adulthood, thereby making it illegal for an adult to have sex with a minor even without the use of force or coercion.

Chapter 566.032. Statutory Rape and Attempt to Commit, First Degree:

1. A person commits the offense of statutory rape in the first degree if he or she has sexual intercourse with another person who is less than fourteen years of age.

2. The offense of statutory rape in the first degree or an attempt to commit statutory rape in the first degree is a felony for which the authorized term of imprisonment is life imprisonment or a term of years not less than five years, but in some cases the term could be longer (i.e. the person is a persistent or predatory sexual offender therefore subjected to an extended term of imprisonment).

Chapter 566.034. Statutory Rape, Second Degree

1. A person commits the offense of statutory rape in the second degree if being twenty-one years of age or older, he or she has sexual intercourse with another person who is less than seventeen years of age.

2. The offense of statutory rape in the second degree is a class D felony, subject to a term of up to seven years.