H383 - Clarify Statutory Scheme/Sex Offenses (SL 2015-181)

Overview: S.L. 2015-181 reorganizes, renames, and renumbers various sexual offenses to make them more easily distinguishable from one another, as recommended by the North Carolina Court of Appeals in a published opinion. The act also clarifies that to be guilty of statutory rape or statutory sexual offense with a person who is 15 years of age or younger, the defendant must be at least 12 years old.

This act became effective December 1, 2015, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.