Should adultery be a crime?

[Mad Max]

In Canada(where I'm from), adultery is not a crime though an individual can be held responible civilly. Divorce is a no fault matter in Canada, so you can't use adultery as a reason to withold property or assets from a spouse.

 

In the United States, it is still technically a crime in 18 states. Those states include:

 

 

Arizona

Colorado

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Indiana

Kansas

Maryland

Massachussetts

Michigan

Mississippi

Missouri

North Carolina

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Tennessee

Utah

Virginia

 

 

If I'm not mistaken, it is a crime and punishable if it occurs within the U.S. military. The question is, should adultery be illegal and punishable?

[kdark]

Absolutely not.

[Woggle]

No but betrayed spouses should be able to easily get out of a marriage and keep their assets.

[Yvelysse]

IMHO

It should not be a crime. It's not punishable in any but civil court (I have yet to see someone go to jail for adultery).

 

Many people hold it is a sin however and they uphold the illegality of adultery.

Most of the states you mention are in the Bible Belt, or have a very high religious base in the communities.

 

Personally, I'd feel betrayed if I was married to a man who would have extramarital affairs.

 

But, (like you said it) Adultery is only punishable in the military.

[OpenBook]

No but betrayed spouses should be able to easily get out of a marriage and keep their assets.

 

This is exactly what I think. It shouldn't be a crime, but it should be a valid reason to divorce a WS and either keep all your assets (if you're the one who's got 'em) or take the WS to the cleaners (if they're the one with the assets).

 

If both cheated, I guess they could split it right down the middle.

[carhill]

As if lawyers don't make enough off of divorce already

[Woggle]

Since marriage in a legal sense is a contract then cheating should be considered a breach of contract and therefore grounds to void it.

[dreamingoftigers]

Since marriage in a legal sense is a contract then cheating should be considered a breach of contract and therefore grounds to void it.

 

I agree with this. I also agree with the prossecuting the spouse that gave an STD.

[flying]

IMHO

It should not be a crime. It's not punishable in any but civil court (I have yet to see someone go to jail for adultery).

 

Many people hold it is a sin however and they uphold the illegality of adultery.

Most of the states you mention are in the Bible Belt, or have a very high religious base in the communities.

 

Personally, I'd feel betrayed if I was married to a man who would have extramarital affairs.

 

But, (like you said it) Adultery is only punishable in the military.

 

Yeah, it's weird, but it is technically a crime in many states, although very rarely prosecuted. In Florida, for example, it's a misdemeanor...but I think the last time anyone used that was when a guy was prosecuted for adultery back in 2006. (It was actually a plea bargain - he was trying to avoid the more serious charge of bigamy!)

 

Anyway. I think in practice, since Fla is a no-fault state, adultery only ever comes into play in consideration of child custody and alimony. Which makes sense to me. It's shxtty behavior, but I wouldn't say it's a crime.

Edited November 22, 2010 by flying

[paleblue]

Interesting question. In some countries it is a crime and is punishable. I would guess they have a lot less adultery. Which in turn probably keeps families together. I find here, I can not get through a day without seeing 3,000 different adds containing some form of sexual advertisement. It's like they glamorize it. No wonder its rampant. It's in our faces everyday. Maybe if all that was removed people wouldnt think so much about it.

 

Anyways, to answer your question, I say yes. If your partner cheats there should be some kind of punishment. I dont know what, but there should be some kind of remuneration.

[Star Gazer]

No. Marriage is a contract. If parties want to breach that contract, they should bear the consequences, but those consequences shouldn't be criminal in nature.

[Sanman]

Depends, would withholding sex for an extended period of time within the confines of a marriage be a crime as well? or even a breach of contract?

[Brandi 2]

No. Marriage is a contract. If parties want to breach that contract, they should bear the consequences, but those consequences shouldn't be criminal in nature.

 

Depends, would withholding sex for an extended period of time within the confines of a marriage be a crime as well? or even a breach of contract?

 

yes, if adultry is a breach of contract, then so should other 'crimes', such as withholding sex.

[Lauriebell82]

I would say it should be classified as more of a social disorder then a crime. However, if certain behavior results from adultry, then it should be prosecuted (WS giving BS an STD or HIV).

[Lauriebell82]

Depends, would withholding sex for an extended period of time within the confines of a marriage be a crime as well? or even a breach of contract?

 

Eh, I would view witholding sex as a manipulation tactic, not a crime. Vows include a promise to be loving and faithful, not a promise to have an active sex life with your spouse.

 

I see what you are saying though, if you classify adultry as a crime, then other marital dysfunctions could easily be considered a "crime" as well.

[Clep]

I don't think it should be a crime. If an STD was a result it should be.

 

I do think that it should be immediate grounds for losing parental rights. A parent who cheats clearly does not have the best interest of their children at heart or any interest at all.

[Yvelysse]

Depends, would withholding sex for an extended period of time within the confines of a marriage be a crime as well? or even a breach of contract?

 

The 'contract' for marriage is to procreate children, Since having the child BORN under a surname and for it's safety (IE: the family unit) then sex is defiantly part of said contract.

 

Withholding sex can be a breach of contract, since no progeny can be created in said marriage because of one parties willful act. This is why adultery is considered a breach as well, It is one parties willful act to not have sex with their conjugal spouse.

 

In many countries a woman can be divorce even abandoned if she is sterile. If the man is sterile he can just walk away from the marriage to become a playboy.

(my uncle did that btw . . .At first everyone thought she was sterile, only to see her preggy AFTER he left town)

[taiko]

Interesting question. In some countries it is a crime and is punishable. I would guess they have a lot less adultery. Which in turn probably keeps families together. I find here, I can not get through a day without seeing 3,000 different adds containing some form of sexual advertisement. It's like they glamorize it. No wonder its rampant. It's in our faces everyday. Maybe if all that was removed people wouldnt think so much about it.

 

 

In the Philippines it is a crime but also there is no divorce, unless a Muslim man wants one. So that half of the population who are seperated are criminals and should a spouse be politically connected a prosecution may occur.

[rebellion]

although marriage is contractual in nature, i think we step into dangerous territory when we say such and such thing is a breach of contract and therefore the contract is void. should people who have been wronged in a marriage be awarded special privileges come divorce? sure. maybe more people would get out of unhappy marriages if they knew they wouldn't lose the house and the kids to the wife who won't put out or cheated (or vice versa). but caution should be exercised when bringing it up in those terms. do we want to see couples signing an actual contract, with child expectations, how they'll raise their children, sex frequency, etc before they wed to make this valid? i see THAT as a step backwards.

[Texsun65]

Of adultery is a crime then so should be witholding of sex. Boring, un-exciting, poor peformance, lously sympathy sex should be a crime as well. All these people get persecuted for betraying their spouse but no one hears the other end of the story that the other spouse witheld sex or manipulated their lives thru sex or gave the most meaningless and minimal effort in their love lifes for decades until the other spouse couldn't take it anymore. The spouse wants to stay married and meet the obligations of the family but strays one time becuase of a maniulating and witholding wife and he is laballed a worthless creep. She sould be convicted of the crime of lack or consortium or whatever it is called.

[Linda9999]

My husband cheated, but I don't think he should be a criminal for it. If he gave me an STI, then I would like to have the option of charging him with assault, though.

[112233]

No but betrayed spouses should be able to easily get out of a marriage and keep their assets.

 

Fixed that for you.

[Spark1111]

Hmmmm..........interesting question.

 

Adultery is the ONLY reason to dissolve a marriage under many conservative religion's tenets, and both the man and the woman have equal rights to do so. Imagine that?

 

In some religions, a marriage may be annulled if one of the spouse's renegs on having children.

 

While most states have no-fault divorce now, betrayed spouse's have the right to sue the spouse and name the AP in civil court IF jointly-held marital assets were spent on the affair or affair partner.

 

Imagine that? It rarely goes to trial, but is used as a bargaining chip to reclaim those assets in divorce court.

 

There have been two cases in South Carolina. The first was a husband who sued both his wife and the OM she left with. He was awarded 50k which he acknowledged he would never see a dime of. He just wanted a jury of his peers to conclude he had been wronged. They did.

 

Oh, and a few years ago, the head of the American Red Cross was forced to resign as was the co-worker he was having an affair with.

 

Why?

 

They used company phones and computers to call, email and text each other all day long while at work.

 

Since the ARC is a not-for-profit org., their affair was subsidized by charitable donations in violation of its charter.

 

So, I do not think it should be a crime, but public opinion is definitely changing in terms of the money it takes to support an affair.

 

And you CAN ALWAYS SUE over money!

[JayJ]

In Canada(where I'm from), adultery is not a crime though an individual can be held responible civilly. Divorce is a no fault matter in Canada, so you can't use adultery as a reason to withold property or assets from a spouse.

 

In the United States, it is still technically a crime in 18 states. Those states include:

 

 

Arizona

Colorado

Florida

Georgia

Illinois

Indiana

Kansas

Maryland

Massachussetts

Michigan

Mississippi

Missouri

North Carolina

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Tennessee

Utah

Virginia

 

 

If I'm not mistaken, it is a crime and punishable if it occurs within the U.S. military. The question is, should adultery be illegal and punishable?

 

Just like in the Muslim countries. See you Americans do have something in common with your enemies.

[zengirl]

Since marriage in a legal sense is a contract then cheating should be considered a breach of contract and therefore grounds to void it.

 

I agree with this, though parties should be able to write into the contract (via pre or post nup, for instance) if they want their marriage to be open in any way. The majority consider fidelity part of marriage -- as do I -- but not all do, so there's no one-fits-all policy.