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A question of consent

The Minnesota Supreme Court issued a ruling, based on the state’s laws, that a woman who was raped while she was drunk should not be considered mentally incapacitated, because she had consumed the alcohol willingly. Her attacker did not force her to consume alcohol against her will. Her attacker, therefore, is not liable for a more serious felony charge, though he could be chared with a gross misdemeanor charge. The man has been granted a new trial.

Well, if that’s what the state’s law says, it’s time to fix the law. A person who is too intoxicated to know what they are consenting to should be protected by law, whether they got drunk themselves or had it poured down their throats.

If a person is unable to give consent, it should not matter how they got in that state. Taking advantage of someone who is drunk and/or passed out is as despicable as using more forcible and violent means.

State Rep. Kelly Moller (D-Shoreview) has introduced a bill to close this loophole in the state’s sexual assault law. Legislators should waste no time passing it.

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