Kaitlyn Hunt, the Florida teenager who was arrested for having sex with her underage girlfriend, has just accepted a plea deal.
19-year-old Hunt, who was 18 at the time she was charged, was in a sexual relationship with another girl at her high school, who was 14 at the time. The 14-year-old’s parents found out about the relationship and got Hunt expelled from school and arrested. After many months of legal drama, Hunt has now accepted a proposed plea deal that Opposing Views reported on back in August.
The deal will consist of a number of different factors. Hunt will plead no contest to five charges, including two counts of misdemeanor battery, misdemeanor contributing to the dependency of a child, and two counts of felony interference with child custody. Hunt will serve four months in jail, followed by two years of house arrest, and finally nine months of probation. After losing her last plea deal in August by violating a court order not to be in contact with the victim, Hunt has been in jail attempting to get a new deal.
Prosecutor Brian Workman says that the deal is as fair as it’s going to be, considering all the circumstances.
“I believe this is a fair and balanced offer that protects the victim,” said Workman, “while giving Ms. Hunt the ability to avoid the most severe consequences of her crimes by demonstrating that no further punishment is necessary.”
The case garnered national media attention after Hunt’s parents and lawyers claimed that the only reason the 14-year-old girl’s parents pressed charges was because they believed Hunt turned their daughter into a lesbian. Both Hunt’s parents and lawyers believe that had Hunt have been a male, this would never have happened.
“They are out to destroy my daughter, because they feel like she ‘made’ their daughter gay,” said Hunt’s mother back in May. “They see being gay as wrong and they blame my daughter. Of course, I see it 100 percent differently. I don’t see or label these girls as gay. They are teenagers in high school experimenting with their sexuality – with mutual consent. And even if their daughter is gay, who cares? She is still their daughter.”
Still, the court maintains that it has nothing to do with the fact that Hunt is gay, but everything to do with the fact that the victim was only 14-years-old, and Hunt was 18.
Hunt’s attorney Julia Graves released a statement announcing the acceptance of the plea deal. That statement is below.
“Kaitlyn Hunt is accepting the plea deal in her best interest as well as that of her family, the “victim” and the “victim’s” family. It is time to enter a plea given the current state of the law and get back to living a somewhat normal life without fear of the unknown for everyone involved. There is too much risk in trying the case when the State, particularly Mr. Workman has willingly worked with defense counsel to obtain this negotiated plea. Kaitlyn is giving up many rights by entering the plea. Not only does she relinquish her legal rights to a trial and requiring the State to prove their case, but she also gives up the opportunity for her supporters as well as her detractors to see and hear any testimony or evidence.
We are hoping to put the litigation behind. We are concerned about the civil litigation continuing with the attorneys for the “victim’s” family for monetary damages but nothing in a civil suit affects the plea we are accepting or causes any violations. Nonetheless, Kaitlyn is going to move on with her life and follow the conditions of her community control and probation imposed by the Court. The next task upon her release from incarceration is to work with supporters and lawmakers toward a change in the law for teenagers attending the same school, no matter what their sexual orientation is. Together, we intend to be available to help educate the students attending our schools and their parents, as well as the teachers and administration that are unaware of these laws and the severe consequences they can carry. Kaitlyn, her family, friends and supporters never want to see another teenager in this kind of situation. Kaitlyn is particularly grateful to her entire family for their nonstop love and support as well as the many well-wishers and supporters around the globe.”
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