Reader comments
Jeffs' attorneys say state 'mixed and matched' law

Doen't this relationship fall under the statutory rape laws, meaning that any sexual relations between Steed and Wall constitute rape?
If that is the case, than Mr. Jeffs facilitating the marriage was a case of giving the green light to Steed to rape Wall, since any sexual relations would be rape and marriage assumes having sex, especially in the context of the FLDS where the overridding goal is having lots of children?
As far as I can tell, this was not a legally contracted marriage, and so the marriage defense does not apply to the sexual relations.
The more I think about it, the more I am beganing to think maybe we should raise the marriage age to 18. However, there are fairly good reasons for allowing it under that age, espeially the already pregnant exception to parental consent.
What people have to realize is that any exception with parental consent also requires formal registration of the marriage.
Only legally formed marriages provide exemption to existing laws against 17 year olds having sex with 37 year olds and the like.

Jack, this isn't about stat rape laws. The whole basis of Jeff's conviction was that on 2 occasions, the jury determined that Allen Steed forcibly raped Elissa Wall. On many other occasions, the sex was consensual. Jeff's didn't under any circumstances encourage Allen Steed to forcibly rape Elissa Wall and If Allen did indeed forcibly rape her, how would Warren Jeffs be responsible or how could he have predicted that Allen would have done such a thing?

\"Doen\'t this relationship fall under the statutory rape laws...?\" \r\n\r\nNope. She was 14, he was 19 -- a 5 year difference in age. \r\n\r\nStatutory rape requires a perp ten or more years older. \r\n\r\nThat\'s why the only way to nail the young boy involved is to claim actual, forcible rape rather than the \"she was too young to give consent\" kind. \r\n\r\n\"I am beganing to think maybe we should raise the marriage age to 18.\" \r\n\r\nIt already is. \r\n\r\nSo\'s the age of consent, but there\'s that pesky \"Romeo and Juliet\" exemption that keeps the prosecutor\'s hands off (pardon the pun) consenting, near-the-same-age high schoolers and young college students.\r\n