Saturday, June 17, 2006

Wanna Get Married ?!?

According to a three-judge panel in Denver Colorado, a girl as young as twelve is able to enter into a common law marriage, and boys may do so at age fourteen.

Colorado is one of ten states that base their marriage laws on a centuries old English law.

Can we please stop looking to Europe for our laws? And correct me if I'm wrong, but centuries ago the life expectancy wasn't so high, and so folks got married earlier.

My next question is... Common law marriage is based on two people living together and behaving as man and wife, right? If a girl is twelve, isn't it molestation when it comes to *ahem* wifely duties? I would think that if a girl is living with someone other than her parents, that person has to be old enough to drive, hold a job, ect...

Same goes for boys, too.

This travesty is based on such a case. From CNN Online:

The appeal was filed by Willis Rouse, 38, who is serving time for escape and a parole violation. He argued that he and the girl began living together in April 2002 and applied for a marriage license a year later. The girl had become legally independent by then, but her mother also consented to the marriage and accompanied the girl and Rouse to obtain a license, the ruling said.

WTFrick kind of mother would consent to such a thing?!?

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