Assistant State Attorney Brian Workman: Stop the prosecution of an 18 year old girl in a same-sex re

[Drale]

My daughter Kaitlyn is a wonderful 18-year-old who is not guilty of anything other than a high school romance, but is being prosecuted for 2 felony counts of “lewd and lascivious battery on a child 12--16 years of age,” because she has a girlfriend who is 15.

Kailtyn’s girlfriend’s parents are pressing charges because they are against the same-sex relationship, even though their daughter has stated that this is a consensual relationship. The two girls began dating while Kaitlyn was 17 but her girlfriend’s parents blamed Kailtyn for their daughter’s homosexuality. They waited until after Kaitlyn turned 18 and went to the police to have charges brought against her.

Kaitlyn was a highly respected student at Florida’s Sebastian River High School with good grades and participation in cheerleading, basketball and chorus. She was even voted “most school spirit.” Now she’s been expelled from school and is facing serious felonies - all because she is in love. If convicted, she could end up in jail or live under house arrest, will have to register as a sex offender, and live her life as a convicted felon.

Our family will do everything we can to stop these people from ruining our daughter’s promising life. This is unjust and unfair - and we need your help to stop it.

http://www.change.org/petitions/assistant-state-attorney-brian-workman-stop-the-prosecution-of-an-18-year-old-girl-in-a-same-sex-relationship#

Another extremely stupid Florida prosecutor. He must be stopped! Sign the petition and pass it on to your friends!

[gopiscrap]

1. This is horrible!

fucking prosecutor...trying to make a name for himself among a bunch of ignorant homophobic assholes

[joeglow3]

2. Why don't we see this outcry in a hetero situation

This is not a new issue. Satutory rape charges happen all the time. Is there anything to show that this is not just an application of the law?

[Drale]

3. The issue is not hetro vs homosexual

the issue is that the relationship started when she was 17 yet the parents waited until she was 18 to do anything. Why do you think that is? They are against their daughter being gay and think they can force her to be straight if they take away her girlfriend. Mental wise whats the difference between a 17 and 18 year old? Nothing its a number that the government decided makes someone an "adult".

[LostOne4Ever]

4. Not really

Despite what this story says we can see from the facebook page they set up it makes it quite clear the relationship did not begin till AFTER the girl was 18. The other girl was 14 at that time.

[div class="excerpt" style="background-color:#dcdcdc; padding-bottom:5px; border:1px solid #bfbfbf; border-bottom:none; border-radius:0.4615em 0.4615em 0em 0em; box-shadow:3px 3px 3px #999999;"]https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreeKate/[div class="excerpt" style="background-color:#f0f0f0; border:1px solid #bfbfbf; border-top:none; border-radius:0em 0em 0.4615em 0.4615em; box-shadow:3px 3px 3px #999999;"]As the summer of 2012 came to an end, the future looked bright for 17-year-old Sebastian River High School senior Kaitlyn Hunt. Voted the student with "Most School Spirit" by her peers, Kaitlyn was an active cheerleader, a basketball player, a camp counselor and cheering coach, and a medical assistant training to join the nursing program at Valencia College after graduation. She looked forward to a career helping others and a memorable final year of high school.

At the beginning of the school year, Kaitlyn made friends with a 14-year-old freshmen girl in Sebastian River High's IB program who played varsity sports and took classes with upper classmen. The girls were peers in the same social circle, and as happens every day high schools across America, their friendship eventually developed into more. In September, shortly after Kaitlyn's 18th birthday, the girls began dating, and they eventually expressed their affection for one another in intimate ways.

When the girls' basketball coach found out that two of her players were dating, she kicked Kaitlyn off the team and informed her girlfriend's parents that their daughter was in a same-sex relationship. The parents then conspired with police to entrap Kaitlyn and press charges.

The police recorded a phone conversation between the two girls, who today are 18 and 15, in which they discussed their relationship. Kaitlyn was arrested and charged with two counts of felony lewd and lascivious battery on a child 12-16. Kaitlyn's girlfriend denies that Kaitlyn ever pressured her and is adamant that their relationship is entirely consensual, but her parents are out to destroy Kaitlyn's life. After two separate judges ruled that Kaitlyn could finish her senior year with her peers, her girlfriend's parents appealed to the Indian River County School Board, who expelled Kaitlyn sent her to the alternative school.

The law is designed to protect our children, but the law does not serve its purpose when it is applied to consensual behavior between peers.

This is still wrong, and shows we to change our statutory laws in order to avoid capturing high school couples like this...samesex and hetero.

[NaturalHigh]

6. I read that on CBS.

That changes the tone of this story a little bit. There is a big difference between 18 and 14.

[pnwmom]

8. There's a big difference between sexual assault and kissing a willing 14 year old.

The evidence the police have is a telephone call in which they discuss kissing.

What state defines kissing a minor as equivalent to "lewd and lascivious battery"?

[NaturalHigh]

10. I have no idea.

I'm not calling for a felony or jail time or anything (certainly not sex offender registry), but IMO there is a big difference between 17-15 and 18-14.

[pnwmom]

11. Don't you think there's a big difference between kissing and battery?

Have you ever heard of an 18 year old male high school student charged with lewd and lascivious battery (or anything else) for kissing a willing female high school student?

[NaturalHigh]

13. Absolutely, there's a big difference.

If that's all it was, no there should not be charges. If there was more intimate contact, different story.

[pnwmom]

14. Short of statutory rape, when have you ever heard of a case

of one high school student being charged with FELONIES for involving a younger high school student in mutual kissing and petting?

I can never recall reading of such a case involving a male and female. Can you?

[NaturalHigh]

15. Yes, about twelve years ago.

I was working part time in a youth facility. We had a kid there charged with pretty much the same crime as this. I left there before his case was over, so I don't know how it turned out.

Edited: Changed from ten years to twelve years. Getting old.

[Ian David]

24. If that was a common occurrence, who would bother finishing school? n/t

[msanthrope]

20. Ahem--you might wish to read the confession of the accused as detailed in

the affidavit.....lot more than kissing.

[dairydog91]

16. I don't see why society should be criminalizing it.

Rape is supposed to mean non-consensual sex. There's more than a slight bit of twisted logic in accusing someone of non-consensual sexual acts and then saying that " even if these acts were consensual, consent will not be a defense". I think virtually anyone who has been to high school would know that lots of 14 year olds are capable of and often do consent to sexual acts, usually with their classmates. The biggest concern for many a 14 year old is that they're having trouble finding someone to do those acts with. I fail to see how the 14-year-old here should be considered a "victim", unless there's evidence that she was actually forced to do something.

Not to mention, there's the overall bizarreness of a society legally requiring that thousands of hormonally-addled adolescents be placed into close-quarters, and then being shocked when some of them start doing the horizontal mambo. Call me crazy, but I think if you don't want 18 year olds and 14 year olds to be having sex, you probably shouldn't be mixing those age groups in the sex-crazed social environment you get when you mix hundreds or thousands of adolescents.

[msanthrope]

21. What acts here were 'consensual?' nt

[joeglow3]

5. Is there proof that did it because their daughter is gay?

Like I said, there have been plenty of cases like this involving hetero couples. Where does the government draw the line for protecting children from adults?

[pnwmom]

9. Would they have filed charges if male high school student KISSED their daughter?

How many cases like that have you ever heard of?

[elehhhhna]

27. Betcha many parents wait until the GUY is 18

so they can press charges.

For some reason my gut is to let a gay woman slide while not a straight guy. Logic dictates that it should be the same...generally. The real issue imo is SHOULD WE CRIMINALIZE everything with no wiggleroom for specifc situations?

[pnwmom]

7. How often do you see young men charged with anything for KISSING?

That's the evidence they have on the older girl: a phone call in which case they discuss kissing.

http://www.keyc.tv/story/22366225/gay-fla-teen-charged-for-underage-girlfriend

But Hunt was kicked off the basketball team near the end of last year after the coach learned of the relationship because players were not allowed to date each other, her parents said. Then, in February, she was charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a child 12 to 16. The day before she was arrested, police and the younger girl's parents secretly recorded a phone conversation in which the two girls discussed kissing in the school bathroom, said Hunt's father, Steve Hunt.

[joeglow3]

12. If that is all it is, then let her go

I would be interested in if that is the extent of the evidence they have.

Edit to add this link:

http://cbs12.com/news/top-stories/stories/free-kate-new-bombshell-kaitlyn-hunt-teen-lesbian-affair-7523.shtml?wap=0

This causes my radar to go off: there clearly were attempts to mis-represent facts to make Kate look more like a victim. Then, you have her parents saying these laws are unfair for kids having sex. At no point did he parents say this law is a joke for just kissing.

All of these things lead me to think it was more than just kissing. IF that is the case, I stand by my original point.

[msanthrope]

22. You should read the affidavit. Lots more than kissing. nt

[tlock5733]

17. Same Rules

It appears the the LGBT community is always demanding equal rights. However they seem to be very upset when that means equal responsibility. The girl involved had the responsibility to know that her relationship was currently illegal. If they are in love they should have waited until the younger girl was of age. I know of a case in a state that recently passed same sex marriage where a nineteen year old male who had consensual sex with a girl who he just met and purported herself to be of age. He spent two years in jail for that one night stand when the girl's mother found out. He was also threatened with 120 years in jail because the girl had kept a diary with each sexual encounter she had. Now the guy had only just met her and had nothing to do with her previous sexual experiences. This did not stop the state from threatening the lengthy jail term to force a plea deal. He could not afford an attorney and the public defender was a useless joke. Now over a decade later he is is still on the sex offender list. Required to register every six months, and his life is ruined. He cannot get a job, or find a place to live because he has a felony. He will not even be allowed to attend his own daughter's school functions because of this offense. This has nothing to do with homosexuality. This is about antiquated laws and the system is an equal opportunity destroyer. He had know idea the girl was fifteen(legal consent age in this state is 16), but it didn't make a difference. Even though he was deceived and tricked by the well experienced fifteen year old he has paid a terrible price. The girl involved who broke the law by having sex before the age of consent suffered no consequences.
The girl involved in this case should have been aware of the laws as she was aware of the age of her partner. She willfully broke the law. Why does she deserve not to be prosecuted. If the girl's parents didn't like her she should have proceeded with extreme caution and not handed them the hammer with which to nail her. Hetero or homo the law is the law and special consideration should not be expected because this is a same sex case. Equality comes with a price. This should serve as a clear warning to both heteros and homos. Be careful what your doing.

[Sheldon Cooper]

18. lol

Welcome to DU, I guess.

[hrmjustin]

19. Yes how horrible of us to always demand equal rights.

[Ian David]

23. It's not about not refusing to hold lesbians equally responsible.

The question is whether or not the girl is being selectively prosecuted because she is gay.

We need to find out if the local prosecutors have refused to bring charges against male/female relationships in similar circumstances (which they are allowed due to prosecutorial discretion) but for some reason have chosen to make an example of this girl.

The question is whether there is selective prosecution, singling her out for harsher treatment. It's not one of letting her off the hook because she's gay or female.

If the prosecutors can find even one fairly recent case of a male/female relationship in that jurisdiction, in which they have filed similar charges, under similar circumstances, then all of this is probably fair.

Edited to add:

If these kids were surrounded by dozens of Senior/Freshman male/female dating relationships, and nobody in their school had ever been prosecuted for it, why should they feel like they were doing something wrong?

If the school allowed seniors to take freshmen as dates to the prom, why should these two girls feel like they were doing something wrong?

Under those circumstances, the "law" would probably seem quaint, like those old "blue laws" that forbid women in some states to wear patent leather shoes.

[Bluenorthwest]

25. Gee, if equality comes with a price, where is the fucking equality? Price has been paid.

In Florida where this case is going on, it is legal to discriminate against gay people in housing, employment, you name it. Yet you speak of equality as if it had been attained. That makes the rest of your blather just that, ravings of the uninformed. Equality. As if.

[hrmjustin]

26. +1,000,000

[dballance]

28. I must say you are not entirely correct. Not all LGBT people are supporting the girl.

There have been plenty of people here on DU, myself included, that make the point the girl broke the law and if the DA prosecutes then that's the DA's job. There is little else the DA can do in light of the younger girl's parents' complaint and all the publicity now.

It's not a matter of sexual orientation to me at all. It's a simple matter of fact. The law is clear; the law was broken. The girl will be prosecuted. That's they way our society works.

If people do not like the law then they have every opportunity to go to their legislators to get it changed. I certainly think that if mandatory registration as a sex offender under the law is the case it really needs to be changed. Not only for this instance, but for every other instance like it. No matter the gender or sexual orientation of the parties involved. There is a vast difference between two high-school kids thinking they're in love and having sex and a predatory adult taking advantage of a young person.

[Iggo]

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