OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A bill designed to fix a loophole in Oklahoma’s forcible sodomy law has cleared a key legislative committee.
A Senate budget panel on Monday approved the bill that was introduced after criminal charges were dropped against a 17-year-old boy accused of forcing a heavily intoxicated girl to perform oral sex. Oklahoma’s highest criminal court upheld the dismissal of charges, saying in a unanimous ruling that while Oklahoma’s rape law addresses unconscious or intoxicated victims, the forcible sodomy law does not.
Sen. A.J. Griffin, who sponsored the bill in the Senate, says the bill also expands the definitions of “sexual assault” and “consent” to bring Oklahoma statutes in line with those in numerous other states.
The bill now heads to the full Senate.
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Online:
House Bill 2398: https://bit.ly/1TtPx8t
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