Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Adultery is no longer a crime in New York State.

 Not only is jaywalking no longer a crime in New York City, the seldom-enforced criminal law against adultery in New York State has now been repealed. 

My sense is that the jaywalking ban was rolled back in part because it was inequitably enforced, while the ban on adultery was so rarely brought to trial that it was simply obsolete.

NPR has the story:

Adultery is no longer illegal in New York, By Ayana Archie 

"Adultery is no longer a crime in New York.

"Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday signed off on repealing a 1907 law prohibiting the act.

"New York's penal law previously said that "a person is guilty of adultery when he engages in sexual intercourse with another person at a time when he has a living spouse, or the other person has a living spouse."

"It was considered a Class B misdemeanor, which carries a jail sentence of up to three months.

"The New York State Senate called the law "outdated."

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Interestingly, surveys indicate  both that most Americans disapprove of adultery, but that the frequency of adultery is quite high. So it's the law that is outdated, not the act.

Also interesting is that adultery is still forbidden under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.  This comes up in discussions about President Trump's nominee to be Secretary of Defense (where he will preside over servicemen and women who are forbidden to follow the examples of their Secretary and their Commander in Chief...)

Here's the NYT on that:

Pete Hegseth’s Mother Accused Her Son of Mistreating Women for Years  by Sharon LaFraniere and Julie Tate

"Reports of his infidelity have focused attention on his character and leadership, particularly for a civilian overseeing the military, where active-duty service members can be subject to prosecution for adultery under the Uniform Code of Military Justice."

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