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My question involves criminal law for the state of: Tn
My ex girlfriend was 17 when she moved in, with her parents consent. CPS found out about it and opened an investigation. The investigator told us if we got married it would void any investigation. Once the metro police got a copy of the marriage papers, they stopped the investigation. A year and a half later, CPS, not the police is trying to list me as a perpetrator of her on their list for sexual abuse/exploitation. What can happen now.
Technically, CPS is correct. The age of consent in TN is 18, and you were at least 4 years older than her. That's a class E felony (39-13-506).
I would suspect that police closed their investigation, not because the elements of the crime weren't present, but more likely because experience told them that their local prosecutor wasn't likely to pursue a criminal case since the perp and victim got married (which required parental consent) and that neither the victim nor the victim's family wanted the issue pressed. But if you weren't married at the time the sex occurred, the crime took place....regardless of getting married AFTER the fact.
If CPS is listing you on a list that THEY maintain, and that isn't maintained by law enforcement or the courts as part of a criminal record, you may consider retaining an attorney to help establish under what color they've got you listed, and any legal recourse you may have to getting your name removed.