Should it Keep Being Legal for Teenagers to Marry in Idaho?
I came across a pretty dramatic title about Idaho and I had to do a little more digging to see what was really going on. The article from Ranker Titled 'Why Does Idaho Lead The Country In Child Brides?' is enough to grab anyone's attention.
Bailey Benningfield wrote on Ranker, "Laws and regulations in Idaho regarding marriage are lax - it's easy for minors' parents to get around the few regulations in place to protect children from being wed too early. According to Idaho law, a judge only needs to determine that a union involving a minor is "in the best interest of society." Although underage marriage often occurs for religious or cultural reasons, there's no getting around the fact that it puts minors at risk."
The original article is from 2019 so I had to see what has been happening in our legal system since. Over the past couple of years the Idaho laws have been modified a bit to limit the risks to youth.
USA Today reported that in 2020, "Gov. Brad Little signed into law legislation setting 16 as the minimum age for a person to get married with parental consent. It limits the marriages of 16- and 17-year-olds to someone not more than three years older. Backers said the legislation was needed to prevent forced or coerced marriages of young girls to much older men."
How the law is written in the Idaho government website is as follows:
Under 18:
16 and 17-year-old applicants must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, or have a notarized statement signed by their parent or guardian. (Legal guardians will need to show a certified copy of their appointment of guardianship.)
Under 16:
If applicant is under 16 years of age, they will need parental consent in the form of a notarized statement and permission must be obtained from the Court.
Do you think this is a problem and the legal age should just be 18 like in most states or leave things how they are?
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