United States v. Eric Eugene Brooks

In April 1986, appellant Eric Brooks engaged in an act of sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old female on the island of Kwa-jalein, within the United States Trust Terri tory of the Pacific Islands. He was charged with rape, 18 U.S.C. § 2031 , and carnal knowledge of a female under the age of sixteen, 18 U.S.C. § 2032 . He moved to dismiss the latter charge, or for a judicial declaration that he would be entitled to defend based on reasonable mistake as to the age of the female. After the district court denied his motion, Brooks entered a conditional guilty plea to the carnal knowledge count and appealed to this court.

Brooks contends on appeal that his conviction is invalid under 18 U.S.C. § 2032 because he was not permitted to defend on the ground that he was reasonably mistaken about the age of the female. We hold that section 2032 does not contain a defense for reasonable mistake of age, and that it is not constitutionally required to do so. We therefore affirm Brooks’ conviction.

18 U.S.C. § 2032 provides that:

The statutory language is clear: sexual intercourse with a female under sixteen years of age is prohibited. There is no mention of a defense for reasonable mistake…