Title
AN ACT AMENDING TITLE 21 ("CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS") OF THE CHEROKEE NATION CODE ANNOTATED
Body
BE IT ENACTED BY THE CHEROKEE NATION:
Section 1. Title and Codification
This Act shall be known as the "Cherokee Nation Criminal Code Modernization Act of 2025" and shall be codified as Title 21, Chapter 45 Section 1111 of the Cherokee Nation Code Annotated.
Section 2. Purpose
The purpose of this Act is to amend the existing Title 21 entitled "Crimes and Punishments" Chapter 45, Section 1111 "Rape Defined" to raise the age of consent to sexual conduct to eighteen (18) years of age.
Section 3. Legislative History
Article VI, Section 7 of the Cherokee Nation Constitution states that the Council shall have the power to establish laws which it shall deem necessary and proper for the good of the Nation. The Council has previously legislated, adopted and revised Title 21 entitled "Crimes and Punishments" as follows:
L.A. 10-90 Eff. Nov. 13, 1990
L.A. 20-08 Eff. Jan. 12, 2009
L.A. 09-12 Eff. May 23, 2012
L.A. 07-21 Eff. Feb. 22, 2021
Section 4. Substantive Provisions
CHAPTER 45
RAPE, ABDUCTION, CARNAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN AND SEDUCTION
? 1111. Rape defined.
A. Rape is an act of sexual intercourse involving vaginal or anal penetration accomplished under any of the following circumstances:
1. Where the victim is under eighteen 18years of age;
2. Where the victim is incapable through mental illness or any other unsoundness of mind, whether temporary or permanent, or giving legal consent;
3. Where force or violence is used or threatened, accompanied by apparent power of execution to the victim or to another person;
4. Where the victim is intoxicated by a narcotic or anesthetic agent, administered by or with the privity of the accused as a means of forcing the victim to submit;
5. Where the victim is unconscious of the nature of the act and this fact is known to the accused; or
6. Where the victim submits to sexual intercourse under...
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