It is is vital that you are aware of the age of consent laws in Texas if you want to avoid being charged with a sex crime. Even in the event that you are not aware of the age of your sexual partner, this is not considered a valid defense against statutory rape charges. Making this even more confusing is that different states have different laws when it comes to the age of consent. You need to be aware of the laws in your specific location. According to Age Of Consent, the age of consent in the state of Texas is 17.
This means that 17 is the absolute youngest age that any individual may freely consent to sexual conduct in Texas. If the individual is 16 years of age or younger, he or she is not legally able to consent to sexual contact of any sort and the person who is older may very well be charged with statutory rape if this occurs.
Texas also does not technically have a so-called “Romeo and Juliet” law. “Romeo and Juliet” laws are intended to protect people who are close in age but one person is slightly below the age of consent. Even though Texas does not have an official “Romeo and Juliet” law, there are specific defenses that can be deployed if the offending partner was no more than 3 years older then the victim, assuming that both parties are opposite sexes. The only other exception to the age of consent laws in Texas is marriage. There are no age of consent laws where having intercourse with a married partner is concerned.
