I am single, college educated, and mother of a 14-year-old in Delaware. Recently I came across statistics showing Delaware being the third most densely populated state with sex offenders and Maryland being the least. This sparked me to do research. To my surprise, Delaware has very confusing and unfair sex offender laws. Very specifically, Title 11 section 770(a)(2) which states it is rape for a 16- or 17-year-old to have sex with someone 30 or older unless married.
First off, since when does marriage determine rape? Second, in federal law the age of consent is 16, most states the age of consent is 16, and most of the world a 16-year-old can consent to sex. So, why do Delaware politicians want to waste a large sum of taxpayer money on a law that doesn’t exist almost anywhere else, destroy people’s lives, destroy families, and all the while make this state look dangerous?
I would like to challenge the Delaware Legislature to repeal this law and have the citizens of Delaware support it.
Holly Glaeser
Laurel