Florida – Jezebel, a general interest women's website published an article entitled, "Florida Girl Faces Felony for Dating Female Classmate." The article discussed how the 18-year-old girl was dating a 15-year-old girl who she had met through varsity sports and classes at the Florida high school the two girls attended. However, when the 15-year-old girl's parents found out about their romantic relationship, they had the older girl arrested on two counts of felony lewd and lascivious battery on a child ages 12 to 16.
Now, the 18-year-old girl named Kaitlyn Hunt "Kate" must choose whether to go to trial or accept a plea deal that would involve two years of house arrest and one year of probation. If she goes to trial and is convicted, she would have to register as a sex offender and could spend up to 15 years in prison. Her parents hope that the growing publicity shed on the case will pressure the state to drop her case.
Kaitlyn's father told Jezebel in a phone interview that his daughter Kaitlyn grew close to her former 15-year-old girlfriend she met through being on the same varsity basketball team and through classes at Sebastian River High School in Sebastian, Florida. Kaitlyn met the younger girl through International Baccalaureate courses, so they were peers in the same social circle. On Facebook Kate's mother wrote about how the two girls hung out with the family at their home and before basketball games. Since Kate's mother had seen the other girl's father at sporting events, she assumed he knew about their relationship. Kate's parents had talked to her about her relationship and accepted it; they didn't think it was a big deal.
It was a big deal for the other girl's parents. When the girls' basketball coach found out they were dating, she kicked Kate off the team and told the younger girl's parents who went and told the police. That is when Kate was arrested. "Kate was ripped out of our arms, terrified, crying hysterically," said Kate's mother. "These people never came to us as parents, never tried to speak to us, didn't try to get the school involved to speak to us and tell us they had a problem with the girls dating, not one single word."
Kate, who agreed to sever ties with her former girlfriend, was expelled from school weeks before graduation. Some feel the state needs to use taxpayers' money to prosecute real criminals, not high school students who have never been in trouble a day in their lives.