Short story- straight A student, 17 years old, has consensual oral sex with his 15 year old girlfriend. He’s now a “sex offender”, and will serve ten years in prison without parole. Even the judge thinks he’s getting a raw deal.
Dammit, the moronic “won’t someone think of the children?!” meme has just destroyed a young man’s life. Fuckers.
I’m so pissed off about this. Hell, why don’t we just lock up all teenage males just to be sure- 'cause you KNOW he wasn’t the only one who’s done this sort of thing. It also really bothers me that the judge’s hands are tied in the matter- that’s not justice, that’s just stupid. Apparently, if the kid had done it today, he’d be getting a much-reduced punishment, as his case was used as an example of how extreme the law can be. His case got the law changed, but existing similar cases were expressly grandfathered out.