After lawmakers in the state of New York passed a bill on Wednesday to abolish a law that went into effect in 1907 that makes adultery a criminal offense in the state, the law could soon be a thing of the past. The statute is not widely known and is rarely enforced.
The law received approval from the state Senate with a nearly unanimous vote. At this point, the ultimate decision is going to be made by New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who is now in the midst of negotiations regarding the budget.
As said by her office, she would look into the proposal. In the previous month, the bill was approved by the state Assembly.
Even though there are still laws in place in a number of places around the country that prohibit adultery, these laws are rarely enforced. At a time when the only means to obtain a legal separation was via the use of adultery, the New York statute was initially enacted with the intention of reducing the number of divorces that were being filed.
An individual is considered to have committed adultery in the state of New York when they "engage in sexual intercourse with another person at a time when he has a living spouse, or the other person has a living spouse
This offense is considered to be a misdemeanor according to the state penal code and can result in a sentence of up to three months in prison.
Despite the fact that the Act has been in effect for more than a century, it has seen very little use in the most recent period of time. It would appear that the most recent adultery accusation in the state of New York was brought against a lady in the year 2010, when she was captured indulging in a sexual act in a public park. However, the charge was eventually dismissed as part of a plea bargain.
Despite the fact that adultery is considered a criminal offense in Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Michigan, it is still considered a crime in various other states in the United States, primarily as a misdemeanor.
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