Learn About The Law
Get help with your legal needs
FindLaw’s Learn About the Law features thousands of informational articles to help you understand your options. And if you’re ready to hire an attorney, find one in your area who can help.
Current as of January 01, 2025 | Updated by Findlaw Staff
(1) Whether or not specifically stated, it is an element of every offense defined in this chapter that the sexual act was committed without consent of the victim.
(2) Lack of consent results from:
(a) Forcible compulsion;
(b) Incapacity to consent; or
(c) If the offense charged is sexual abuse, any circumstances in addition to forcible compulsion or incapacity to consent in which the victim does not expressly or impliedly acquiesce in the actor's conduct.
(3) A person is deemed incapable of consent when he or she is:
(a) Less than sixteen (16) years old;
(b) Sixteen (16) or seventeen (17) years old and the actor is at least ten (10) years older than the victim at the time of the sexual act;
(c) An individual unable to communicate consent or lack of consent, or unable to understand the nature of the act or its consequences, due to an intellectual disability or a mental illness;
(d) Mentally incapacitated;
(e) Physically helpless; or
(f) Under the care or custody of a state or local agency pursuant to court order and the actor is employed by or working on behalf of the state or local agency.
(4) The provisions of subsection (3)(f) of this section shall not apply to persons who are lawfully married to each other and no court order is in effect prohibiting contact between the parties.
Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Kentucky Revised Statutes Title L. Kentucky Penal Code § 510.020.Lack of consent - last updated January 01, 2025 | https://codes.findlaw.com/ky/title-l-kentucky-penal-code/ky-rev-st-sect-510-020/
FindLaw Codes may not reflect the most recent version of the law in your jurisdiction. Please verify the status of the code you are researching with the state legislature before relying on it for your legal needs.
A free source of state and federal court opinions, state laws, and the United States Code. For more information about the legal concepts addressed by these cases and statutes, visit FindLaw’s Learn About the Law.
Get help with your legal needs
FindLaw’s Learn About the Law features thousands of informational articles to help you understand your options. And if you’re ready to hire an attorney, find one in your area who can help.
Search our directory by legal issue
Enter information in one or both fields (Required)