Indiana Senate Bill 67 proposes changes to the Hoosier State's laws regarding the age of consent.

What Is the Age of Consent

While the age of consent varies from state to state, the age of consent is the minimum age for a person to legally consent to sexual activity. The age of consent ranges between 16 - 18 years of age in most states.

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Current Indiana Law

In Indiana, the age of consent is currently 16. So what exactly does that mean? Well, there is actually a lot of gray area in the Hoosier State. According to IndyJustice.com, "Unlike in many states, there is no single statutory definition of consent in Indiana." FortWayneDefense.com does a really good job of breaking down some of the various gray areas. For example, they say a 16-year-old can legally consent to sex with anyone over the age of 18 without risk of statutory rape charges. There is also something called the "Romeo and Juliet" that makes concessions for 14 and 15-year-olds to consent to sexual conduct with a peer who is no more than 4 years older than they are.

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Indiana Senate Bill 67

Indiana Republican Senator Mike Bohacek has authored Bill 67 which proposes changes to the state's age of consent laws. According to the website of the Indiana General Assembly, the bill would,

Adds the criminal offense of sex with a minor, which is committed when a person who is at least 22 years of age engages in sexual intercourse or other sexual conduct, fondling, or touching with a child who is at least 16 years of age but less than 18 years of age.

This would mean the age of consent in Indiana would be raised from 16 to 18 if the bill is signed into law.

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