Is it illegal for someone who is 21 years old to have sex with someone
who is 17 years old?  Let's say the persons are in Arkansas, where the
legal age of consent is 17.  I've been trying to find the answer, and
all I get are vauge ones.  This is the main web-site that I looked at,
and I simply can't put up with not being able to find it anymore. 
http://www.ageofconsent.com/ageofconsent.htm

Hi,

Thank you for your question. The quick answer is 'yes', provided of
course that it is consensual.

Some of the definitions on the site you mention are slightly
misleading because the law is changing, but this mostly affects gay or
lesbian couples. The law regarding heterosexual couples is far more
clear. However I do believe that you've found the correct site to use
as a reference.

If you follow the link through to the Arkansas page, it becomes easier
to understand.

Age of Consent: Arkansas
http://www.ageofconsent.com/arkansas.htm

I'll run through the definitions listed with a little further explanation.

In Arkansas it is legal for two people of opposite sexes to indulge in
sexual intercourse unless this activity can be defined as 'rape' or
'sexual misconduct'. At this point, and only at this point, does it
become illegal.

There is no upper limit to the age of either participant though there
is a lower limit, what is known as the legal age of consent. In
Arkansas the legal age of consent is 16. This means that in your
example, the sex is legal because neither person is under 16, unless
'rape' or 'sexual misconduct' applies.

Age of Consent
http://www.ageofconsent.com/ageofconsent.htm

Arkansas defines 'rape' and 'sexual misconduct' clearly.

Rape is defined as one of four circumstances:

1. If the sex is "by forcible compulsion", which means that one
partner does not want to be a partner and the act is forced onto them.

2. If one partner is "incapable of consent because he is physically helpless".

3. If one partner is "less than fourteen years of age" unless the
other partner is less than two years older.

4. If the partners are not married, one is "less than sixteen years of
age", "not his spouse" and "who is incapable of consent because he is
mentally defective or mentally incapacitated".

Presuming that in your example the act is consensual, 'rape' does not apply.

Age of Consent: Arkansas
http://www.ageofconsent.com/arkansas.htm

'Sexual misconduct' is even clearer as there is only one circumstance
in which this applies: if the partners are not married and one is
"less than sixteen (16) years old."

Again, presuming that in your example the act is consensual, 'sexual
misconduct' does not apply either, making the act legal under the laws
of Arkansas.

Age of Consent: Arkansas
http://www.ageofconsent.com/arkansas.htm

I hope that satisfied your question in detail. Thank you for allowing
me to answer it. Feel free to ask for clarification if you require.

Poe

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Request for Answer Clarification by epicscream-ga on 18 Jan 2004 07:14 PST

You said the quick answer is 'yes.'  My main question was, "Is it
ILLEGAL to have sex with someone who is seventeen if the other is
twenty-one."  Please clarify, just so I can read it with my own eyes
and not be confused.

---

Clarification of Answer by poe-ga on 18 Jan 2004 08:03 PST

Epicscream, my apologies. I phrased that very badly indeed.

No, it is NOT illegal to have sex with someone who is seventeen if the
other is twenty-one.

As long as both the male and the female partner are above sixteen and
the act is consensual, Arkansas law states that it is entirely legal.

Look at poe's answer. It is illegal in Arkansas only if it is forced
or the person is physically helpless (unconscious, asleep, etc.)
Otherwise it is not illegal in Arkansas. Forced sex, or sex with a
physically helpless person, is
illegal in Arkansas regardless of the age of the people.

"In Arkansas it is legal for two people of opposite sexes to indulge in
sexual intercourse unless this activity can be defined as 'rape' or
'sexual misconduct'. At this point, and only at this point, does it
become illegal."Rape is defined as one of four circumstances:

1. If the sex is "by forcible compulsion", which means that one
partner does not want to be a partner and the act is forced onto them.

2. If one partner is "incapable of consent because he is physically helpless"."

The other two circumstances of rape, and sexual misconduct, only apply
if one of the people is under 16.