Doing research: If a 15 year old girl is pregnant and gets an abortion, and the father is 19...?

[Starsign]

....If the girl chooses to get an abortion and her parents agree to it, assuming the father is 19 and the parents do not press charges, would the father still get arrested?

We were talking about statutory rape in a criminal justice class, and one of the students asked the professor something like this. The professor did not know the answer. So what would be the verdict? If the girl were to receive an abortion, then due to medical records would the father still be arrested even if the parents did not press charges?

[Catherine W]

If the law doesn't know, then no. It is definitely considered statutory rape, though. By far.

[hotwheels122287]

first answer is mistaken. unless we know which state this act of sex was in, we cannot say whether or not it was in fact statutory rape.


but lets say IF this was a state where the statutory laws apply and it is illegal for the 19 year old to have sexual relations with the 15 year old then medically the doctor is required to phone the police. but, this being said, with no confession of who the father is, the case will go nowhere.

[~♥~Kiara~♥~]

no he wouldn't. they wouldn't know

[Goldfly252000]

Actually the police CAN get a warrant to for a DNA sample of the fetus. They already basically have evidence of a crime. The girl isn't going to be getting pregnant. I mean if you are talking about it being Statutory rape that means that she is under the age of consent, so only way she can get pregnant is statutory rape. I'm a little concerned that a criminal justice teacher wouldn't know this.

[lawmomof3]

Only if the aborted fetus was DNA tested and/or there was other evidence to support a guilty verdict.

If the presumed father committed the offense of statutory rape, the easiest and most efficient way to secure a conviction is obviously to wait until the baby is born and then do a DNA check to verify paternity.

But a pregnancy is not required to secure a conviction for statutory rape. If the parents had text messages, Facebook messages, notes, emails, etc. confirming that the two of them had sex, he is very vulnerable to being arrested and convicted.

Additionally, parents NEVER have the authority to "press charges." Parents (or anyone else with the information) can report the crime. The police will investigate and decide whether or not to arrest. And the prosecutor makes the determination over whether or not to file charges. The parents wishes are completely and utterly irrelevant.

[Jim]

The other answers explained the legal part better then I can.

On a practical realistic note. Usually not. First the court system has other things to do. Second, most government employees are too lazy to do something that they can easily ignore. And third is politics. Pressing charges when no one wants charges pressed doesn't get you re-elected.

[little princess]

The parents aren't involved in the 'pressing charges' phase. Whether charges are pressed or not is left to the District Attorney's office. Even if the parents are 'OK' with their whole sexual relationship, that wouldn't excuse the father from potential criminal charges.

The state's individual age of consent law and any (if any) close in age exception would determine whether or not the father were eligible for charges to be brought against him.