{"id":2398,"date":"2016-05-03T14:52:14","date_gmt":"2016-05-03T21:52:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/?page_id=2398"},"modified":"2022-12-15T15:28:00","modified_gmt":"2022-12-15T22:28:00","slug":"adultery-illegal-arizona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/arizona-family-law\/blog\/adultery-illegal-arizona\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Adultery Illegal in Arizona?"},"content":{"rendered":"
In modern times it is just as likely that a couple gets a divorce than the couple stays together forever. According to the American Psychological Association, 40-50% of marriages end in divorce in the United States. One of the reasons, and certainly the most emotionally damaging reason, is because of adultery.<\/p>\n
While it is understandable how adultery can be seen as terrible act to commit, is it actually illegal in Arizona? Yes. Entering a marriage is a legally binding contract and adultery is the ultimate act against that contract.<\/p>\n
ARS 13-1408<\/a> defines the act of adultery as; a married person who has sexual intercourse with another than his or her spouse, and an unmarried person who has sexual intercourse with a married person not his or her spouse.<\/p>\n What this means is that it is only consider adultery in Arizona if the spouse had sexual intercourse with another person besides their husband\/wife. Anything besides sexual intercourse would not be considered adultery in Arizona.<\/p>\n Marriage is complicated, much more so than people believe before they enter into one. Even the strongest and happiest of marriages come with disagreements, feelings of loneliness and anger towards the other spouse.<\/p>\n It is because of these reasons that the act of sexual intercourse outside of the marriage is not enough on its own to be considered adultery. The husband or wife has to actually report their spouse to the police. Only then can the act be considered adultery.<\/p>\n To file a complaint for a adultery, call the Phoenix Police Department non-emergency number<\/a>.<\/p>\n The consequences of committing adultery in Arizona is that the spouse can be found guilty of a class 3 misdemeanor. The other person involved in the intercourse can be punished as well, regardless of their marital status.<\/p>\n A class 3 misdemeanor is one of the least severe punishments in Arizona. The maximum penalty of a class 3 misdemeanor in Arizona is up to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine and up to 1 year of probation.<\/p>\n While the penalties of a class 3 misdemeanor may be minimal, there are several negative consequences with acquiring a misdemeanor. If the judge determines that probation is necessary and the person on probation commits another crime during this period, they could end up serving serious amounts of jail time.<\/p>\nAn Adultery Complaint Must Be Filed to be a Crime<\/h2>\n
Consequences of Committing Adultery in Arizona<\/h2>\n