Romeo & Juliet Act Laws in Texas

Statuatory Rape

Sexual relations must be consensual to be legal -- otherwise, the act constitutes the grievous crime known as rape. This can take the form of either forcing an individual into sexual relations against her will, or engaging in sex with an individual who cannot legally give consent to engage in such relations. Engaging in such relations with an individual who cannot legally consent to them, even if the relations are consensual, is called statutory rape. Different states have different definitions of the age at which an individual can give consent for these relations, known as the age of consent, but it is commonly either 17 or 18.

The definition of statutory rape is strict and not subject to interpretation. This can occasionally lead to situations in which consenting partners find themselves separated by the age of consent by only a year or two, such as situations in which one partner is 17 or older (the age of consent in Texas) and the other partner is 16. These individuals might view themselves as being a modern Romeo and Juliet, in a consenting and serious relationship yet kept apart by forces beyond their control. Romeo and Juliet laws, such as those in Texas, provide for more-lenient punishments for an individual being charged with statutory rape by the criminal justice system for consensual relations with a partner whose age is three years or fewer than his own.

As of June 2011, the Romeo and Juliet laws in Texas were explicitly written to cover only sexual relations between partners of opposite sexes; consequently, homosexual partners whose sexual relations qualify as statutory rape, but would also qualify for protection under Romeo and Juliet laws if the partners were a man and a woman, do not qualify for leniency under these laws. Consequently, the Texas courts do not provide the same leniency to homosexual partners on opposite sides of the age of consent that heterosexual couples can receive.

Romeo and Juliet Act laws in Texas do not make it legal for individuals whose ages are separated by three years or less on opposite sides of the age of consent to engage in sexual relations. These laws will not stop the Texas police from arresting such an individual or the Texas prosecutor from pressing charges. Rather, it is a defense that the attorney of an individual under prosecution can use at her trial.