age of consent in colorado
Colorado, as many other states, has determined the age of majority to be 18 years of age or older. Individuals are treated as adults at the age of 18, with some exceptions, such as drinking alcoholic beverages (12-47-901), renting cars, and purchasing a hotel room. At 18 years old, a person in Colorado can buy cigarettes, a handgun, or lottery tickets, pawn their things, get married without their parents consent, and vote. However, technically, there’s no law preventing a child under 18 from smoking tobacco, they just can’t buy it. According to our state law, as well as that of every other state, persons consuming or in possession of alcohol must be of at least 21 years of age (12-47-901). In Colorado it is illegal to enter into a liquor store if under 21 years of age (12-47-901(b)). It is also a criminal act for adults to sell or give alcohol to any person under 21 years of age (12-47-901(1a)). Colorado has a close-in-age exemption. A close in age exemption, also known as Romeo and Juliet law, is designed to prevent the prosecution of underage couples who engage in consensual sex when both participants are significantly close in age to each other, and one or both are below the age of consent. Colorado Statutory Rape Laws. Statutes governing Colorado's age of consent, associated criminal charges, available defenses, and penalties for conviction. In Colorado, it is illegal for an adult (someone 18 or older) to have sex with a minor (someone younger than 15), even if the sex is consensual. Those who break the law have committed statutory rape. Colorado Legal Ages Laws. Colorado statutes or laws assign different ages of majority or consent for different activities. The legal age of majority is 21, unless another law permits that action to be taken earlier. Currently, most age related privileges come at the age of 18. The table below explains some of the legal age laws in Colorado. Colorado law (2-4-401(6)) defines a minor as a person who has not attained the age of 21, except as otherwise provided in the express language of another statute. The age of majority is the age when young people are considered adults for most matters. After school hours, no minor under the age of 16 will be permitted to work more than 6 hours in one day, unless the next day is not a school day. Except for baby-sitters, no minor under the age of 16 is allowed to work between 9:30p.m.-5:00a.m. What is the Colorado Age of Consent? The Colorado Age of Consent is 17 years old. In the United States, the age of consent is the minimum age at which an individual is considered legally old enough to consent to participation in sexual activity. Individuals aged 16 or younger in Colorado are not legally able to consent to sexual activity, and such activity may result in prosecution for statutory rape. Colorado statutory rape law is violated when an individual has sexual intercourse with an individual under age 17. The age of consent can vary among states, and some states differentiate between consensual sex between minors who are close in age (for example, two teenagers of the same age), as opposed to sex between a minor and a much older adult.
17 Years