Kaitlyn Hunt Speaks from Jail

 

Flickr CC via Pernille Louise

A lesbian teenager from Florida is in jail after a dramatic summer facing charges of statutory rape.  Kaitlyn Hunt of Sebastian Florida, was turned in by police by the parents of her former girlfriend, who was fourteen at the time.  Hunt fought the charges initially, claiming that the family would not have pressed charges if the relationship had been heterosexual.

  After rejecting an offer for a plea deal that would require her to register as a sex offender, Hunt’s attorney Julia Graves was able to negotiate a new plea bargain.  Now Hunt will spend four months in jail followed by two years of house arrest, but she will not have to register as a sex offender.  Hunt says that she will advocate changing statutory rape laws to make exceptions for teenagers attending the same school.

  It has not been made clear whether the case was discriminatory.  Hunt has not denied breaking the law.  The family of the alleged victim has not spoken out in the media and the identity of the 14 year old has not been made public.  Hunt said that her girlfriend had been someone she could talk to and trust, but that after all the hardship did not love her the way she did before.

  Hunt also claims that she was “set up in multiple ways” when asked about contacting the girl after she was ordered not to by the court.  The hacker group anonymous came out in support of Hunt, claiming that if the couple was not gay then Hunt would not have been prosecuted.  Florida state attorneys said that about thirty similar cases are prosecuted every year, most of which involve heterosexual couples.

Flickr CC via Doug Caribb