STUDENTS; SEX CRIMES; RAPE;

RAPE;

Connecticut laws/regulations;

You asked whether volunteer school mentors, student resource officers a town employs to work in schools, or regular police officers can be prosecuted for having consensual sexual relations with high school students age 16 or older. The Office of Legislative Research is not authorized to give legal opinions and this report should not be considered such.

It is a felony for any adult to have sexual relations with a person under age 16 and for school employees to have sexual relations with students (CGS § 53a-71). However, none of the three groups you asked about falls within the definition of “school employee” because none is on a school’s payroll (CGS § 53a-65(13)). Depending on their particular activities, volunteer mentors and resource officers might be considered coaches, who can be prosecuted for having sexual relations with students under age 18. The statutory definition covers coaches in athletic activities and those who provide “intensive, ongoing instruction” and have sexual relations with secondary school students who receive the coaching or instruction in a secondary school setting (CGS § 53a-71(a)(9)).

These crimes are second-degree sexual assaults. If the student is age 16 or older, they are class C felonies, punishable by imprisonment for one to 10 years, a fine of up to $ 10,000, or both. Violators must register on the Department of Public Safety’s sex offender registry for 10 years (CGS § 54-251).

SP-L: eh