via Feministing, a Maryland appellate court decided that it's not rape if you consent to sex and decide or need to withdraw that consent during intercourse. The specific court decision [PDF] focuses on what a jury should have been told regarding this matter:
"JURY INSTRUCTIONS; COURT’S RESPONSE TO JURY QUESTION REGARDING WHETHER PRIOR CONSENT VITIATES CRIMINAL CHARACTER OF POST PENETRATION WITHDRAWAL OF CONSENT; BATTLE V. STATE, 287 MD. 675 (1980); QUESTION POSED BY JURY, “IF A FEMALE CONSENTS TO SEX INITIALLY AND, DURING THE COURSE OF THE SEX ACT TO WHICH SHE CONSENTED, FOR WHATEVER REASON, SHE CHANGES HER MIND AND THE . . . MAN CONTINUES UNTIL CLIMAX, DOES THE RESULT CONSTITUTE RAPE?” WAS NOT AMBIGUOUS AND THUS REQUIRED A SPECIFIC ANSWER AND, NOTWITHSTANDING WEIGHT OF AUTHORITY TO THE CONTRARY, SHOULD HAVE BEEN ANSWERED IN THE NEGATIVE UNDER THE MOST CURRENT MARYLAND LAW TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE."
The actual case itself is detailed in the PDF linked above, and is somewhat complicated, so you may want to read it for yourself. Much of the case for why this situation should be rape as outlined in the previous trial is also described.
Technorati Tags: consent; Maryland; Maryland
MeSH Tags: Maryland; Rape
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