North Carolina is one of the states where the age of consent is lower than 18. According to Age of Consent, in order to legally consent to sexual activity in the state of North Carolina an individual must be at least 16 years old.  

Is there an age exemption law? 

North Carolina does have laws that protect individuals who are close in age. These exemption laws are sometimes called “Romeo and Juliet” laws, as they exist to protect underage couples of similar age engaging in consensual sex. In some cases, one party may be over the age of consent and one may not be.

In North Carolina, how these laws apply depends on the situation. In certain circumstances, North Carolina’s laws make completely exempt qualifying close in age couples, and in others it may only offer a legal defense against the charges.

Are there any other exceptions? 

Specifically, no employee of a K-12 system may engage in any kind of sexual activity with a student unless the employee has married the student. This applies regardless of the student’s age, even if the student is over the age of 18.

The only exception to the above is if the employee is not an administrator, student teacher, teacher, safety officer or a sport coach.

However, the age of consent changes depending on where you are. According to AgeofConsent.net, the age of consent in the state of North Carolina is 16 years old.

What does this mean?

This means that individuals who are 15 years old or younger are not able to legally consent to sexual activity of any kind. The only real exception to this is if an individual under the age of 15 marries their sexual partner. Then the spouse is exempt from the age of consent rule.

Are there any other exceptions?

In addition to the marriage exemption, North Carolina has a close in age exemption. These are often known as “Romeo and Juliet” laws, and intend to prevent younger individuals who are close in age from falling afoul of statutory rape laws.

The Romeo and Juliet law in North Carolina is loosely worded. Essentially, if a 16-year-old and a 15-year-old engage in sexual activity, it is highly unlikely that the courts will prosecute either due to the existence of the exemption. If it is a 15-year-old and an 18-year-old, though, this is less likely.

Additionally, if an individual works for a K-12 education system in any capacity, they may not engage in any sexual activity with any student, no matter how old the student is. The only exception to this rule is if the couple marries.

From politicians to religious leaders, athletes, entertainers and others who are well-known, allegations of sexual assault often derail one’s livelihood and reputation. It is imperative for people facing these hurdles to approach their case carefully.

Permanent damage to one’s reputation

Even for those who are only well-known in their local community, sexual assault charges are very disruptive. For example, a local religious leader, politician or business owner will likely have an even harder time recovering from such a case because many people in the community are familiar with them. Moreover, local media coverage sometimes shatters the reputation of people in this position and this is very unfortunate when the claims are completely baseless. Unfortunately, some innocent people are never able to restore their reputation.

Stress and the inability to focus

Many people become overridden with anxiety during a sexual assault case and they lose the ability to think clearly and mentally process their circumstances. However, during such a case, taking the right approach is extremely important. If you are facing false allegations of sexual assault, you need to do all you can to prove your innocence and restore your good name. Our website covers a variety of topics related to sexual assault cases and various legal considerations for people in this position.

Closing loopholes in consent laws

Consent – in these cases, the act of agreeing to have sex or perform a sexual act—is a controversial and nuanced conversation. When someone agrees, under what circumstances and the person’s subsequent actions can all change the ways that the law views a sexual relationship. Not every case is a clear-cut rape or assault. Many cases fall into a kind of in-between space for many reasons.

In 2019, North Carolina sexual assault laws came under national fire for a number of different reasons, most notably because of the ways the law treated consent. Legally, a person who gave consent cannot withdraw it mid-act, and a person who is intoxicated from their own willing consumption of drugs or alcohol had reduced legal standing. Similarly, the law did not specifically address rape perpetuated by a person who drugged a person’s drink, often referred to as date rape.

This may change how people treat your case

The legal world is changing, and, while these legal changes play an important role in protecting victims, this can open up a variety of new issues for defendants. Many rape and sexual assault cases depend heavily on the testimony of witnesses, especially the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator. But anyone can claim that they started to revoke consent. Without any evidence of the incident or alleged revocation, many cases may devolve quickly.

You need to be prepared for your case to change as the state implements these new laws. Ask your attorney how these legislative changes impact you.

Over the years, time has revealed serious issues with the sex offender registry—issues that go unresolved. Individuals cannot take care of their children. You cannot go to everyday events like fairs or other venues. Sometimes removal is violent and even leads to more time in jail. These notable arrests leave many wondering: Is there anything I can do about the sex offender registry?

What puts someone on the registry

Sex offender registry rules can seem convoluted and disproportional to the relevant crime, and, rest assured, claimants have filed petitions seeking to protect registrants’ rights. Until those issues are resolved, you need to know very clearly what the registry means, how it affects you and how to petition for removal.

There are three tiers of sex offenders who the courts require to register. Only tier 3 offenders register for life and the law reserves that tier for the most severe sexual assaults and other crimes. Most individuals on the list are on tiers 1 or 2, meaning their crimes involved relatively less harmful acts like public exposure, statutory rape and similar crimes.

If you are on the registry, any one who has an internet connection can search the registry and find your name, your physical description, your charges and other details.

Removal from the registry

Some individuals will never successfully petition for removal, but, through dedicated effort, many people can remove their names from the list. Removal depends on your case details and the length of time since your offense. For instance, juveniles on the registry have an easier time petitioning for removal, especially if their case is otherwise sealed. In general, if it has been 10 years since your offense without any recurrence or issue, you may also qualify. Because there are many prejudices against registrants, you should not request removal on your own; you need to work with an experienced attorney capable of helping you.

According to FindLaw, “date rape drug” is the laymen’s term for three types of drugs: Rohypnol, Ketamine and GHB. The strength of these various narcotics varies, as do the side effects. Because of this, states and the federal government classify them differently. Which drug a person possesses and/or uses will dictate his or her punishment.

Possession of one of the three date rape drugs may result in federal or state charges. Just like at the state level, the federal courts will consider the strength of the drug and the harm it caused the victim. For instance, the federal courts punish the possession of Rohypnol is by sentencing the offender up to three years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Federal punishments are often much more severe than state-level penalties.

Pitt Community College briefly outlines the classification of the three most common date rape drugs and their penalties. Per the website, GHB is a Schedule I drug and is on par with heroin, Peyote and other opiates. It has no medical use, lacks accepted safety standards and has a high potential for abuse. Possession of this drug is a class one felony and carries a prison sentence between four and five months long, even for first-time offenders.

Ketamine is a Schedule III drug. This means it possesses some level for abuse, but it has an accepted medical use. Possession of this drug without a prescription may result in a class one felony charge. A first offense is punishable by up to 45 days in jail. A second offense may result in four to five months in jail.

Rohypnol is a Schedule IV drug. Rohypnol is in the same class as Vicodin, Xanax and Clonazepam. It has a low potential for abuse and accepted medical uses. Possession of this drug without a prescription is a class one misdemeanor and punishable by up to 45 days in jail. A second offense is a class one felony and punishable by up to five months in prison.

According to North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault, the distinguishing factor between these two rape charges is the age of the victim. Statutory rape is sexual intercourse of any kind with someone under the age of consent. This varies depending on your age. It also results in different types of statutory rape.

For example, statutory rape of a person who is 15 years of age or younger occurs between someone who is at least 12 years old has intercourse with someone who is six years younger than them. This may come into play if you are a teen who is 18 or 19 and you still have a girlfriend or boyfriend who is underage. If your partner is younger than 15, it constitutes statutory rape.

It is important to note the names of charges may be different if you engage in other sexual activity rather than vaginal intercourse. However, the rules regarding ages still apply. You should note that the age of consent in the state is 16. If your partner is 16 or older, then you do not commit statutory rape when engaging in sexual activity.

Statutory rape does not require the use of force and it may still occur even if both parties consent. The defining factor is the age of you and your partner. This information is for education and is not legal advice.

Someone who has received a charge of statutory rape must understand the state laws about this type of crime.

Statutory rape vs. statutory sexual offenses

North Carolina defines statutory rape as forcible vaginal intercourse. Sexual contact that falls outside this category is a statutory sexual offense. Although the degrees of these crimes are the same in North Carolina, penalties for statutory rape are more severe.

Degrees of statutory offenses

In general, statutory rape occurs when someone between the ages of 12 and 15 has sexual intercourse with a person who is at least six years older. For example, this crime could include a person who is 12 and a person who is 17, or a person who is 15 and an adult of 21.

North Carolina recognizes two other categories of statutory rape. Statutory rape of a child occurs when the victim is younger than 13 and the perpetrator is older than 18. First-degree statutory rape describes sexual intercourse between a victim younger than 13 and an individual who is older than 12 and four years older than the victim (ages 11 and 15, for example).

Relationship-based statutory offenses

Some sexual relationships between adults are illegal in North Carolina. A person can receive a statutory sexual offense charge if he or she is a teacher, coach, administrator or other educator who has had sexual contact with a student of any age at the same school. This is also true of an adult who has sexual contact with a person for whom he or she is acting as a guardian or substitute parent.

These charges carry penalties of up to 240 months in prison for a first offense. For this reason, individuals charged with this crime must protect their legal rights.

According to The News & Observer, this state has a unique law that does not exist in any other state when it comes to consent. The law says that once someone gives consent, he or she cannot revoke it. This essentially means that once you agree to have sex with someone, you cannot tell them you changed your mind and no longer agree.

This opens many doors to women becoming victims in court. One horrible example is if you use drugs or get drunk, under this law, you cannot claim you were raped. Another issue is that many sexual assault cases are already your word against the accused person’s word. This only makes it more difficult to prove your case if the other person says you consented or if you have had a relationship with the other person at any time in the past.

In fact, many feel the only way to get a conviction for a crime like rape is if you do not know your attacker at all. That means any rape case where the victim knows the accused is probably going to end in favor of the accused. This information is for education and is not legal advice.

According to the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation, if you are a state resident, you must register on the sex offender registry if you have any reportable conviction. If you move to the state and your conviction requires reporting, then you must register. If you are in the state for more than 15 days and have a reportable offense, you must register as well. Finally, if you are a student or worker whose offense requires registration or your home state requires registration, then you must register.

As mentioned, the date of your conviction plays a large role in whether you must register or not. Some crimes require registration further back than others. For example, a conviction for first-degree rape requires registration if it was after January 1, 1996, but a conviction for first-degree statutory rape only requires registration if it happened after December 1, 2015.

The type of crimes always matters because not every crime requires registration. Generally, crimes against minors and sexual crimes require registration. These include kidnapping, felonious restraint, aiding and abetting an offense against a minor, secretly peeping and prostitution of a minor or a mentally disabled person.

You should register as soon as possible. The sheriff’s office will verify your registration requirements if you are unsure. This information is for education and is not legal advice.