Vero Beach Sex Offender Found in Saskatchewan

By Brandon K. Thorp Sat., Apr. 9 2011 at 11:59 PM

Harvey.

Denise Harvey, a 42-year-old woman, did a very, very bad thing. In 2006, she had sex with a 16-year-old boy.

Why's it a bad thing? Because Denise Harvey lives in Florida. If Denise Harvey lived just a few hours north -- in Alabama or Georgia -- having sex with a 16-year-old wouldn't be considered criminal at all. It would be considered weird or hot, depending on your predilections, but nobody could say boo about it. In those states, 16 years is the age of consent. Just like it is in most of the civilized world. (As I write these words, I'm sitting in Brooklyn, New York, where the age of consent is 17, and I'm drinking coffee procured by a friend from Spain, where the age of consent is 13.)

How was Denise Harvey punished for her grievous geographical error? With 30 years in prison. Which means that her underaged paramour could, in theory, have fathered a son who could then father a son who would be legally have-sex-withable by the time Denise Harvey gets out in the 2040s.

Harvey's sentence was handed down in 2008, and she appealed. She lost. So she did what anybody would do under similarly crazy circumstances. Denise Harvey ran like hell. On the day in March when she was supposed to begin serving her jail sentence, police arrived at her home to discover her missing. Now, she has been discovered in Saskatchewan, Canada, and she is in custody.

Should a 38-year-old woman have sex with a 16-year-old? Probably not, not that it's any of my business. Should she get 30 years in prison for it? Goddamn, but it's hard to think she should. Certainly, not all of Florida's judges would think so. Circuit Judge Richard Oftedal recently sentenced Jessica Wink, another woman who had sex with a 16-year-old, to probation. And Wink, unlike Harvey, didn't just have sex with a minor. She filmed it.

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Tags:

age of consent, Denise Harvey, Jessica Wink

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Anonymous

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/201...

Former Vero Beach resident Denise Harvey claims refugee status in Saskatchewan

[...] Canada does not extradite people unless the incident is a crime in both countries, according to the Department of Justice website — a principle known as "double criminality."

Having sexual relations with a 16-year-old is not against the law in Canada, unless there is a power dynamic such as teacher-student. In that case, the age of consent in Canada is 18. Although Harvey's acts would not be illegal in some states, the age of consent for all cases in Florida is 18. [...]

Dls

I think laws like this are crazy,I thought we lived in the UNITED STATES,there is no unity in these kind of laws and with different sentence

josephcooke

Where were these chicks when I was 16?

Richard Cox

Sounds like our courts have wasted valuable time and money, again and might ruin a women's life in the process. When will Americans wake up? I smell the American "Civil War 2." Great job on writing the article, Brandon, I love reading all your stuff.

Brandon K. Thorp

Thanks for reading, Richard.

Anonymous

Florida's age of consent is 16 (by virtue of the Florida Supreme Court decision BB v. State, at http://www.law.fsu.edu/library.... However, the Legislature then enacted Florida Statute 794.05 ("Unlawful sexual activity with certain minors.-- (1) A person 24 years of age or older who engages in sexual activity with a person 16 or 17 years of age commits a felony of the second degree...").

Contrast this with Spain, in which the unrestricted age of consent is 13, or Mexico City, Mexico, in which the age of unrestricted consent is 12.

Megalodon

You have to love those smocks they make the inmates wear for their intake photo. Are they about to give her a haircut?

Guest

as it should be, a child is a child

Eric Night

OK, turn the tables. 40 year old MAN, 16 year old GIRL.

What say you now?

Mikegoodfellow

There would be those calling for his DEATH BEFORE PROSECUTION, period.

Brandon K. Thorp

...exactly what I'd say in any of the many, many states in which the age of consent is 16. "Creepy, but not my business."

Eric Night

Actually, the average incarceration for such a crime is 4 years for a male for consensual sex with 16 and older in states, while the average incarceration is less than a year for a female, while registration requirements are generally more stringent for males as well. Note, this is not a complaint, per se; statutory rape (specifically, CONSENSUAL sex activity between adults and teens 15 and above) laws in general, at its most basic stage, MAY be gender specific because of the costs related to pregnancies by minor girls. In addition, girls generally suffer more emotional problems than boys (though both are victimized, in general).

The point is that society is NOT being honest with the reasoning given for disparate gender sentencing. I would prefer a national uniform age of consent at 18, with a 4-year gradation window to avoid the ridiculous Romeo and Juliet clauses. Gradation means that it's not a full sex offense for underage sex if the age difference between the two sex partners (or oldest to youngest sex participant in multi-encounter situations; yes, creepy, but necessary to mention for legality purposes) is 4 years or less. For instance, 18 can be with 14; 19 with 15, 20 with 16, and 21 with 17; any larger difference between adult and minor is considered a registrable statutory offense.

Hopefully that clarifies and identifies the problem, and offers a reasonable solution to such a problem. Thanks, Brandon.

Anonymous

18 is too high. 16 with a 4-year gradation window would be better. The law should not tell a person whose brain is absolutely flooded with the hormones of puberty that having sex is completely illegal despite that person's intense desire to do so.