In New Hampshire, the age of consent for heterosexual sexual behavior is 16. The age of consent for homosexual conduct is 18. This makes New Hampshire one of the few states that explicitly allow homosexual conduct by explicitly setting an age of consent. Of course, sexual behavior with someone who has not reached the age of consent means that a person can be charged with legal rape. Under New Hampshire law, a person is guilty of aggravated sexual assault if they penetrate someone after stating that they do not “voluntarily consent” or before having “a reasonable chance to flee and/or resist.” The jury found Labrie not guilty of these charges. With this finding, the jury essentially concluded that the prosecution had failed to prove that the girl resisted sexual contact. The jury also found Labrie not guilty of simple bodily harm. The prosecution claimed that Labrie had committed this offence by biting the girl in the breast. How will your lawyer defend these allegations? In New Hampshire, it is not a defence to say that you wrongly confused the child with the elderly, as in the case of the age of consent. And this even if the minor lied about his age. On Friday, a jury found New Hampshire Prep School alumnus Owen Labrie not guilty of rape — but also found him guilty of several lesser charges. At first glance, the complex verdict does not seem to answer the burning question at the heart of the case: Did Labrie, then 18, force a 15-year-old girl to have sex without consent? While the full answer is tricky, the result is simple. The jury found that Labrie had sex with the girl — but did not force her into unwanted contact.

New Hampshire has a near-age exemption, also known as the “Romeo and Juliet Law,” from the legal age of consent. This provision allows partners who are close in old age, or both below New Hampshire`s age of consent, to have consensual sex without fear of prosecution under New Hampshire`s age of consent regulations. For more information, see About near-age exceptions. And in New Hampshire, a 16-year-old can`t legally have sex with a 15-year-old, even though they`ll turn 16 in a day. Susan is a member of the California State Bar. She received her J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of Law in 1983 and practiced plaintiff assault law in California for 8 years. She has also taught civil procedure law in the paralegal program at Santa Clara University. She then taught English as a foreign language in the Czech Republic for eight years. Most recently, she taught English as a second language in public schools in Montgomery County, a suburb of Washington, D.C.

Now she devotes her time to writing about legal and environmental issues. You can follow her on her LinkedIn page. Like many states, New Hampshire has a “Romeo and Juliet” exemption from legal rape. These exceptions allow individuals to have sexual relations with minors when they are of age. These laws are designed to allow teens to have consensual sex without fear of prosecution. Florida is a good example. The State has a general age of consent of 18. But under a Romeo and Juliet law, people under the age of 23 can legally have sex with people between the ages of 16 and 17.* Inviting or attempting to invite a child under the age of 16 to engage in sexual activity, whether face-to-face or via a computer. is also illegal in New Hampshire. This is true whether there is sexual activity or even a face-to-face meeting. In New Hampshire, law enforcement officers routinely pose as children interested in sex with older men. The perpetrators are regularly arrested and prosecuted for child abduction as a result of law enforcement.

According to this provision, a young person under the age of 13 may not consent to sexual contact. Anyone who has sexual contact with a child under the age of 13 can be convicted of aggravated sexual assault, a crime punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison. If the alleged victim is between the ages of 13 and 16 and the alleged perpetrator is more than four years older than the victim, they can be charged with general sexual assault under New Hampshire law. It is a Class B felony punishable by one to seven years in prison. New Hampshire law follows this pattern – with a twist. It sets a strict age of consent at 13: until then, all sexual intercourse is illegal. After 13 years, the rules change. It is not illegal to have consensual, non-penetrative sexual contact with someone between the ages of 13 and 16 unless you are at least five years older than the younger person. (Think teasing and caresses.) However, it is still illegal to have penetrative sexual contact with anyone between the ages of 13 and 16.