Staton v. State

BOEHM, Justice.

It is a core constitutional principle that in a criminal prosecution the State must prove every element of an offense. We hold that when the age of a defendant is an element of a crime the defendant does not waive that requirement by failing to *472file a motion to dismiss on the ground that he is not of the required age.

Facts and Procedural History

On the evening of January 18, 2004, two fifteen year old girls, M.M. and E.G., were dropped off at the swimming pool where Joshua Staton was working as a lifeguard. Both M.M. and E.G. knew Staton because his family had socialized with…