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Bill To Make Child Marriage Illegal Heading For Governor’s Desk

MGN Online

Florida Governor Rick Scott says he will sign a bill barring anyone under the age of 17 from receiving a marriage license. Lawmakers filed the measure after hearing the story of a Florida woman who was raped by her church deacon as a young girl, became pregnant and was forced to marry him at age 11. Senator Lizbeth Benacquisto (R-Fort Meyers) sponsored the measure in the House.

“We should not allow people to continue to assault children and then use marriage as a shield for their behavior,” Benacquisto says.

Benacquisto initially proposed a ban on marriage for anyone under the age of 18, but some pushed for the ability of high school sweet hearts to marry, especially if there’s a pregnancy involved. The legislation heading to the governor’s desk is a compromise that would allow a 17-year-old to marry someone who is no more than 2-years their senior.

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Regan McCarthy is the Assistant News Director for WFSU Public Media. Before coming to Tallahassee, Regan graduated with honors from Indiana University’s Ernie Pyle School of Journalism. She worked for several years for NPR member station WFIU in Bloomington, Ind., where she covered local and state government and produced feature and community stories.

Phone: (850) 645-6090 | rmccarthy@fsu.edu

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