Ohio could soon raise minimum age to marry and ban child marriages

COLUMBUS - Ohio could soon ban marriages among underage boys and girls – treating both genders the same for the first time.

In the final days of 2018, Ohio lawmakers passed House Bill 511 to ban most marriages for children younger than 18. Children as young as 17 years old could marry if they get approval from their county's juvenile court and the couple's age gap is fewer than four years.

Under current law, boys are mostly banned from marrying before age 18, but girls can marry as young as 16 years old. Children of any age can marry if their parents and a juvenile court consent to the union.

Between 2000 and 2015, 4,443 girls age 17 or younger were married, including 59 girls under the age of 15.

Read more: https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2019/01/02/ohio-ban-child-marriage-eliminate-double-standard-young-brides/2462266002/