The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office believes that two men in their twenties brought two teenage girls to a Baton Rouge hotel Sunday afternoon. The teens, who are 13- and 17-years old, are relatives of each other. Authorities believe that the group smoked marijuana together in the hotel before the two men had sex with the 13-year-old in separate incidents, and apparently in a room separate from the others. The two men and the 17-year-old girl are now charged with felony offenses, based upon the allegations.
The men are each from Baton Rouge. One is 26-years-old–the other is 22. The 17-year-old girl says that the group went to the hotel together, but two rooms were rented so that the men could have sex with the 13-year-old, according to law enforcement. Authorities say that the men told investigators that they thought the girl was 17- or 18-years-old. The actual 17-year-old claims that the men knew the younger girl’s true age, according to a story carried in The Advocate.
Each of the men is charged with felony carnal knowledge crimes and contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile. One also faces a drug charge and a traffic offense. The 17-year-old girl is accused of being a principal to carnal knowledge of a juvenile on the allegations between the men and her younger relative. She also faces other offenses, including a marijuana charge.
Louisiana’s law of principals is defined by statute. The law allows prosecutors to pursue charges against a person accused of aiding-and-abetting a crime, or one who counsels or procures another to commit an offense. While the statute expressly does not require a person to be present at the time an offense occurs, it does state that the person must be concerned in the commission of the offense.
Accomplice liability and other legal concepts that seek to expand the reach of laws can bring complex issues in criminal court. Anyone accused of a sex crime can face harsh consequences if a conviction is entered. Legal counsel may help a person accused of a crime in dealing with the complexity of the array legal issues.
Source: The Advocate, “Two BR men accused of having sex with 13-year-old girl,” Ryan Broussard, Dec. 25, 2013