In the Internet age, “catfishing” means luring a person into a relationship by using a fictional persona online. And responding to such catfishing may land you in jail if it leads to having sex with an underage person who claims to be older.
The age of consent in Texas
In Texas, the age of consent for a person to have sexual activity with another person is 17. Below that age, a person is not considered to be able to make a wise decision. So even if the sexual activity is unforced and consentual, criminal charges may ensue for what is known commonly as “statutory rape.”
Also, the exact age matters when it comes to what charge is applied.
Having sex with someone who is under 17 but older than 14 is the crime of indecency with a child. That is a second-degree felony with punishment including 2 to 20 years in prison.
Having sex with someone who is under 14 is the crime of aggravated sexual assault. That is a first-degree felony with punishment including 5 years to life in prison.
Again, consent is not an issue when the person is under 17 years old.
What about false claims to be older?
But what if the underage person claimed to be 17 or older, and you believed them?
After all, that happens frequently in the Internet age, when a child under 17 may communicate with an adult online and claim to be 17 or older in order to get attention.
In that case, if you wound up having sex with that person, you still could be charged with a sex crime. That’s because not knowing a minor’s age is not considered a valid legal defense against a sex crime charge in Texas.
That’s right:
Even if a minor lied about their age, an adult could be charged with sexual assault for having sex — even consensual sex — with someone who was under 17.
This was established in the Texas case of Fleming vs. State of Texas, when the Court of Criminal Appeals held that not knowing a sex partner’s age was not a legal defense for underage sex under Texas law.
Instead, the court held that an adult has the burden of determining a sex partner’s age and cannot claim ignorance of their age as a legal defense, even when a minor lied about their age.
Beware of online lures
That alone is a very good reason why you should beware of online lures, or “catfishing,” which ultimately could lead to your arrest.
Anyone can claim anything online, and a false age is just one of them. Sites such as Tinder, Snapchat, Facebook or dating apps all can allow underage children to represent themselves as being older than they actually are.
Many children long to be older and more “grown up,” especially as they enter their teen years. That may lead to false claims about their age online. But you cannot take such claims at face value, especially when not knowing a person’s age is not a legal defense in Texas when facing a charge of sex with an underage child.
Online solicitation is another crime
Another sex crime involves online solicitation of a minor. Texas Penal Code Section 33.021(b) holds that soliciting a minor online for engaging in sexual contact, sexual intercourse or deviate sexual intercourse is a third-degree felony. Possible punishments include 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of as much as $10,000.
Aggressive sex “sting” operations may net many persons for allegedly committing this crime, even if they never met the minor in question. In fact, there may be no minor involved. The online misrepresentation in this case may not be an age but an entire identity, with undercover law officers claiming to be underage girls.
Defend your legal rights
If you or a family member faces a sex crime charge, keep in mind that you have legal rights and you may have varied avenues of legal defense.
When it comes to underage sex, one such defense is what is commonly known as a “Romeo and Juliet” law in Texas. This law holds that if the older sex partner is not more than 3 years older than a partner who is under 17 but at least 15, the charge may be dropped. That protects teen lovers who are close in age from being prosecuted when one is underage.
Other defenses are also available, including mistaken identity and establishing that the sex crime claim was false.
As for online solicitation charges, the defense of entrapment may apply. That means you claim that law officers goaded you to commit a crime which you otherwise would not have committed.