Psychiatrists Raising The Bar

[BentSailor]

Originally Posted by ssneade

that happens in many more instances these days. there needs to be clear cut definitions in this area. there are too many circumstances blurring the landscape......

where do you draw the line between statutory rape and plain old pedophilia? and at what age should sex be classified as consensual?.....

I don't think one can draw a line at an "age" and always be correct. And therein lies the problem, set an age limit too low and we don't protect everyone appropriately, set it too high and we're punishing cases of obviously consensual sexual activity. Leaving the idea of consensual sex purely to a judicial judgement call on the other hand is just begging for disaster.

I don't have an answer to this one, though with four boys of my own & a fair number of nieces to think of, I wish I did.

[SloopJonB]

Originally Posted by BentSailor

I don't think one can draw a line at an "age" and always be correct. And therein lies the problem, set an age limit too low and we don't protect everyone appropriately, set it too high and we're punishing cases of obviously consensual sexual activity. Leaving the idea of consensual sex purely to a judicial judgement call on the other hand is just begging for disaster.

I don't have an answer to this one, though with four boys of my own & a fair number of nieces to think of, I wish I did.

Totally agree. The age of consent in Canada is 14, which I think is too low (although when I was that age I wouldn't have thought so, especially if my English teacher had tried anything. ). I think a lot of people are deceived by the outer appearance of worldliness of adolescents these days but their emotional development and judgement is still much like it has always been.

I'm no lawmaker but surely there can be some slack cut for examples like I put in my previous post.