If you are 19 years old and have sex with a 16 year old who is a foster child under the custody of the state of Mississippi and get her pregnant is there a chance I could go to jail. Also will they allow us to get married if I am capable of supporting the both of us financially and physically?

Below you will find the laws on Statutory rape as well as age requirements for marriage.

The age of consent for sexual intercourse in the State of Mississippi is 16. To be criminally prosecuted for the crime of Statutory Rape the law below applies to all residents of Mississippi.

§ 97-3-65. Statutory rape; enhanced penalty for forcible sexual intercourse or statutory rape by administering certain substances.

(1) The crime of statutory rape is committed when:

(a) Any person seventeen (17) years of age or older has sexual intercourse with a child who:

(i) Is at least fourteen (14) but under sixteen (16) years of age;

(ii) Is thirty-six (36) or more months younger than the person; and

(iii) Is not the person's spouse; or

(b) A person of any age has sexual intercourse with a child who:

(i) Is under the age of fourteen (14) years;

(ii) Is twenty-four (24) or more months younger than the person; and

(iii) Is not the person's spouse.

(2) Neither the victim's consent nor the victim's lack of chastity is a defense to a charge of statutory rape.

(3) Upon conviction for statutory rape, the defendant shall be sentenced as follows:

(a) If eighteen (18) years of age or older, but under twenty-one (21) years of age, and convicted under subsection (1)(a) of this section, to imprisonment for not more than five (5) years in the State Penitentiary or a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or both;

(b) If twenty-one (21) years of age or older and convicted under subsection (1)(a) of this section, to imprisonment of not more than thirty (30) years in the State Penitentiary or a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), or both, for the first offense, and not more than forty (40) years in the State Penitentiary for each subsequent offense;

(c) If eighteen (18) years of age or older and convicted under subsection (1)(b) of this section, to imprisonment for life in the State Penitentiary or such lesser term of imprisonment as the court may determine, but not less than twenty (20) years;

(d) If thirteen (13) years of age or older but under eighteen (18) years of age and convicted under subsection (1)(a) or (1)(b) of this section, such imprisonment, fine or other sentence as the court, in its discretion, may determine.

(4) (a) Every person who shall have forcible sexual intercourse with any person, or who shall have sexual intercourse not constituting forcible sexual intercourse or statutory rape with any person without that person's consent by administering to such person any substance or liquid which shall produce such stupor or such imbecility of mind or weakness of body as to prevent effectual resistance, upon conviction, shall be imprisoned for life in the State Penitentiary if the jury by its verdict so prescribes; and in cases where the jury fails to fix the penalty at life imprisonment, the court shall fix the penalty at imprisonment in the State Penitentiary for any term as the court, in its discretion, may determine.

(b) This subsection (4) shall apply whether the perpetrator is married to the victim or not.

(5) In all cases where a victim is under the age of sixteen (16) years, it shall not be necessary to prove penetration where it is shown the genitals, anus or perineum of the child have been lacerated or torn in the attempt to have sexual intercourse with the child.

(6) For the purposes of this section, "sexual intercourse" shall mean a joining of the sexual organs of a male and female human being in which the penis of the male is inserted into the vagina of the female or the penetration of the sexual organs of a male or female human being in which the penis or an object is inserted into the genitals, anus or perineum of a male or female.

Sources: Codes, Hutchinson's 1848, ch. 64, art. 12, Title 3 (22); 1857, ch. 64, art. 218; 1871, § 2672; 1880, § 2942; 1892, § 1281; 1906, § 1358; Hemingway's 1917, § 1092; 1930, § 1122; 1942, § 2358; Laws, 1908, ch. 171; Laws, 1974, ch. 576, § 8; Laws, 1977, ch. 458, § 7; Laws, 1985, ch. 389, § 3; Laws, 1993, ch. 497, § 1; Laws, 1998, ch. 549, § 2; Laws, 2007, ch. 335, § 1, eff from and after passage (approved Mar. 14, 2007.)

Mississippi Age Requirement for Marriage

Under 21

If either person applying for a marriage license is under the age of 21, parental or a legal guardian's consent to marry is required. If no consent is given at the time an application is submitted, the parents or guardians will be notified via certified mail and the marriage application will be held for three days or (72) hours.

All marriage lisences are held for a (72) hour waiting period regardless of age. This can be waived by a judge of the courts if the applicants are over 21 years of age.

Males under 17 and females under 15 years of age can not be issued a marriage license unless a parent or guardian petitions a judge to waive the age requirements. If you are over those respective ages, you may apply for a marriage license but the (72) hour waiting period and certified letter to parents applies.

Once a marriage license is issued, the license is falid for an indefinite period of time in Mississippi.

Fees are $22 cash in most counties. A blood test by a lab authorized for marital syphilis testing and registered with US Department of Health and Human Services is required within 30 days. The fee for the blood test is $13 and the test results will be valid for 30 days from the date the results are given and must be submitted within that time frame or it may be considered invalid.

For more information on marriage appilcations in Mississippi please Visit this link:

http://marriage.about.com/cs/marriagelicenses/p/mississippi.htm