Opinion Piece Argues Student-Teacher Sex Should Be Decriminalized

The column, “Sex Between Students and Teachers Should Not Be a Crime,” has stirred up controversy since appearing in The Washington Post over the weekend. Former attorney Betsy Karasik wrote the opinion piece in reaction to Montana Judge Todd Baugh sentencing a teacher to 30 days in jail for raping 14-year-old who subsequently committed suicide. That sentence has been overturned.

Judge Under Fire for Comments About 14-Year-Old Rape Victim

Karasik writes: "Laws related to statutory rape are in place to protect children, but the issue of underage sex, and certainly of sex between students and teachers, may be one in which the law of unintended consequences is causing so much damage that society needs to reassess."

Tonight on The Factor, Monica Crowley and Bill O'Reilly called the column outrageous. Crowley said, “[Karasik] talks about how we need to use this conversation to advance a much needed dialogue about sex. We’ve been having a dialogue about sex since Adam and Eve. This isn’t about sex, this is about a crime.”

O’Reilly took issue with the piece being published in the first place. “Crazy irresponsible is not in the journalistic definition. […] Journalists do not have a duty to present that.”  FoxNews