Missouri lawmakers consider bill to raise marriage age from 15 to 17

JEFFERSON CITY—Teens age 15 and 16 would no longer be able to marry in Missouri if lawmakers approve a bill pitched as a deterrent to sex trafficking.

The bill proposed by Rep. Jean Evans, R-Manchester, would raise the minimum age of marriage with parental consent from 15 to 17.

Speaking to the the House Committee on Children and Families on Tuesday, Evans shared stories and data about forced marriage, including a News-Leader article that provides an overview on human trafficking in Missouri and a 2016 KMOV article specifically looking at the problem of teenagers being brought to Missouri for marriage.

KMOV found that 800 16- and 17-year-olds had been married in Missouri since 2012, with 100 15-year-olds being wed in the same span. In one 2015 case, a man brought his teenage daughter from Idaho to Kansas City to marry the rapist who impregnated her.

Read more: http://www.news-leader.com/story/news/politics/2017/02/08/missouri-lawmakers-consider-bill-raise-marriage-age-15-17/97619460/