Also known as: effectively consent · effective consents · valid consent
Written by attorneys — see sources below.
Consent that is freely and voluntarily given by a person who possesses legal capacity to agree. Coercion, threats, deception, or incapacity due to youth, intoxication, or mental impairment renders consent ineffective.
Ethan Evans invited Ezra Eastman to a party and supplied him with multiple drinks. Ezra became visibly unsteady and repeatedly said he felt dizzy. Ethan then led Ezra to a bedroom and initiated intercourse. Ezra later reported the encounter, stating he could not clearly resist or consent. The facts establish that Ezra lacked capacity to give effective consent, satisfying the common-law element of rape.
Eric Espinoza accepted an invitation from Evelyn Ellison to tour a site. Once inside her vehicle the doors locked and Evelyn drove Eric across a state line to a remote cabin. Armed guards prevented Eric from leaving for three days while Evelyn demanded he sign an agreement. Eric's initial agreement to the tour did not constitute valid consent once threats and physical barriers were imposed, establishing unlawful confinement.
Edith Eberhardt, a sixteen-year-old, visited a clinic seeking birth-control information without her parents. State law required parental consent for minors. The clinic provided services directly to Edith. The question is whether Edith could supply effective consent for the medical decision despite her age.
In 1972, New York Education Law section 6811(8) prohibited the sale or distribution of any contraceptive to a minor under sixteen. It limited distribution to persons sixteen and older to licensed pharmacists. It also banned the advertisement or display of contraceptives. Population Planning Associates, Inc., a North Carolina corporation engaged in mail-order sales of nonprescription contraceptives, regularly advertised its products in New York periodicals. It filled orders from New York residents without age restrictions. On December 1, 1971, New York officials notified PPA that one of its advertisements violated the statute and requested future compliance. A February 23, 1973 letter threatened referral to the Attorney General for legal action if PPA failed to comply with the provisions prohibiting sales to minors and sales by nonpharmacists. On September 4, 1974, state inspectors served PPA with a report recording its advertising of male contraceptives and advising it to cease sales in violation of state law. PPA, along with Population Services International, Reverend James B. Hagen, three physicians, and an adult New York resident, filed suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. A three-judge District Court for the Southern District of New York declared § 6811 (8) unconstitutional in its entirety under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the Federal Constitution insofar as it applies to nonprescription contraceptives, and enjoined its enforcement as so applied. The plaintiffs sought declaratory and injunctive relief against enforcement of the statute. Appellants included New York Governor Hugh Carey and other state officials responsible for enforcing the Education Law. After proceedings, a three-judge district court in 1975 declared section 6811(8) unconstitutional in its entirety under the First and Fourteenth Amendments insofar as it applied to nonprescription contraceptives and enjoined its enforcement. The district court opinion is reported at 398 F. Supp. 321 (1975). The Supreme Court noted probable jurisdiction in 1976.
View caseEdgar Evers took an unmarried girl from her father's custody. The girl was in fact under sixteen. Edgar claimed he reasonably believed she was older. The court examined whether his good-faith belief defeated the charge even though the girl could not legally consent.
Henry Prince stood trial at the Surrey assizes before Denman, J. He faced a charge under section 55 of the Offences against the Person Act, 1861, for unlawfully taking Annie Phillips, an unmarried girl under sixteen years of age, out of the possession and against the will of her father. The jury returned a verdict of guilty. Judgment was respited to allow the Court for Crown Cases Reserved to consider a legal question arising from the case. The evidence established that Annie Phillips was fourteen years old. She had told Prince she was eighteen, and she appeared older than her actual age. Prince maintained that he had acted on a bona fide and reasonable belief that Phillips was eighteen years old. Denman, J., reserved the case for the opinion of the Court on whether the defendant's belief constituted a defence to the charge.
View caseConsent is ineffective when obtained by force, threats of great bodily harm, or when the victim lacks capacity due to unconsciousness, intoxication, or youth. Limited categories of fraud also render consent ineffective.
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Yes. Consent must be freely and voluntarily given by a person with legal capacity. Coercion, threats, or incapacity renders any purported consent invalid and the confinement unlawful.
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A minor's capacity to consent is limited. Statutes may require parental involvement, yet the minor may still possess sufficient maturity for certain decisions under constitutional privacy analysis.
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No. A defendant who takes a girl under the statutory age acts at his peril. A good-faith belief that she was older does not negate liability.
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…in part). : Planned Parenthood , however, "does not suggest that every minor, regardless of age or maturity, may give effective consent for termination of her pregnancy. See Bellotti v. Baird , 428 U. S. 132 (1976). The fault of [the particular statute considered in Planned Parenthood ] is that it imposes a…