The Indiana Supreme Court has ruled that while the age of consent for sexual activity in the state is 16, sending a 16-year-old a sexually explicit photograph is a crime.
The Northwest Indiana Times reports that the high court acknowledged the law’s inconsistency, but unanimously upheld the law in its ruling on Monday.
The ruling says a person who knowingly sends a sexually explicit photograph to someone under age 18 is sharing material that’s harmful to minors, which is a felony.
Justice Mark Massa says the court interprets the plain text of the law. He also says that it’s up to the Legislature to decide whether such inconsistency is judicious.
Legislative attempts to raise the state’s age of sexual consent to 18 have repeatedly failed to advance.
