Understanding Global Perspectives: The Legal Age of Consent in Nevada

As we explore the nuances of laws, it’s clear that they reflect the attitudes and values of a people. Laws vary from region to region with the intent to balance individual freedom against the well-being of society as a whole. While they are meant to serve the public interest, they also reflect society’s values and cultural norms. For example, countries throughout the world have different views on the legal age of consent to sexual acts. Generally speaking, the age requirement exists to protect minors from harm and ensure the freedom of choice to do so as a consenting adult.

Not to be confused with the marriage age, the legal age of consent in Nevada is 16 years. In 1995, the minimum marital age was raised to 18 with the exception of parental consent. Senate Bill 129 was passed in 2017 to lower the marriage age to 18 years. As of 2019, no exceptions to the law exist. In Nevada, the statutory rape laws state that any person who has a relationship with another individual who is less than 16 years of age is guilty of a felony punishable by 5 to 20 years in prison. For a minor 14 years of age or older, sexual conduct with a third party or one that is older than their partner by 4 years or more is considered a crime. However, if the partner is a spouse, the relationship is exempt from being considered statutory rape. As mentioned above, it’s important to distinguish the legal age of consent with the minimum marriage age. Because of the variance, an individual can legally consent to have sex with an adult despite being too young to marry them.

The minimum legal age of consent exists around the world with some regions requiring more thought and consideration than others. Some have lower ages than Nevada while others have higher or none at all. In Denmark, for example, no legal age of consent exists with the suppression of discussions surrounding it. Some states within America have dropped the minimum marriage age, too, in the name of protecting underage individuals or young couples forced to marry. The age of consent is determined by lawmakers in each individual region. The United Nations has no specific legal age of consent. Rather, it encourages member states to protect minors from abuse and exploitation. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Committee on the Rights of the Child have urged nations to prevent people from exploiting minors. Some legislators believe there should be a set standard across all member countries. Their argument is that it would be easier to enforce and discourage people from using lax legal loopholes in other nations to exploit underage individuals. They also highlight the fact that laws in some regions require minors to marry rapists as more reason to have a universal approach. Their proposal is to amend the American Convention on Human Rights to set the minimum age of criminal liability at 18 while at the same time prosecuting individuals who coerce minors into exploiting each other. In addition to underage marriage, this would result in criminal prosecution where an adult was aware of the righteous age of the coerced minor.

Perhaps the greatest deterrent to implementing universal law is the traditional practice and history of many countries. The resistance that lawmakers are facing does not stem from personal bias, but rather the risk of violating the rights of individual cultures. For that reason, it is unlikely that global human rights will dictate a universal legal age of consent. Instead, the individual needs of each region will continue to guide legislators as they come to impasses. By looking to other nations and approving of their existing laws, Nevada will likely see more changes in the future.