Asked 7/22/2016 – Houston, TX

I’m a student, and on my campus, as I’m sure on most, there is a very vocal group of students who preach the doctrine of affirmative consent, or “a freely given, ongoing, enthusiastic, verbal yes”. This raises questions, such as: what about persistent asking? How frequent should the yes be? What’s the enthusiasm standard? Does a nod count?

Now, I know affirmative consent is not the legal standard (yet), so I looked up the legal standard. Texas 22.011 says consent is not present when penetration is achieved by force or threats (duh). This case https://casetext.com/case/jiminez-v-state-1, seemed to illustrate the line, but seeking the bare minimum to beat the rap in court isn’t the safe play (plus its sleazy).

So, lawyers, help a brother out (and hopefully cut down on your number of future potential clients), what’s a simple and effective rule for obtaining consent that you wish everyone lived by? No means No? Get a verbal yes before intercourse? Written contracts? Verbal yes before any penetration seems smart to me.

BTW, here I mean sober consent. I won’t even touch alcohol and sex. In today’s day and age, it seems best to not have sex if anyone’s had one drop.

Answer

You are asking a life question, not a legal one. Consent is determined on a case by case basis, so you may research the case law for facts of particular cases. The rule to live by to avoid any legal question: wait until your wedding night.