## Facts

- Martin Holmes, age 24, met a 15-year-old girl in Rochester, New Hampshire.
- The girl told Holmes she was 17.
- After exchanging phone numbers and speaking by phone, the girl (after consuming alcohol) called Holmes and arranged to meet at a local park.
- At the park, Holmes and the girl had sexual intercourse.
- Holmes was indicted and tried for felonious sexual assault based on sexual penetration with a person at least 13 but under 16, not his spouse, under RSA 632-A:3, II.

## Issues

1. Whether RSA 632-A:3, II requires the State to prove the defendant knew the complainant was under 16 at the time of penetration.
2. Whether a mistake-of-age defense is available for felonious sexual assault under RSA 632-A:3, II.
3. Whether prior New Hampshire precedent treating statutory rape as strict liability should be overruled in light of the Criminal Code’s general culpability provision, RSA 626:2, I.

## Decision

- The New Hampshire Supreme Court affirmed the conviction.
- The court held felonious sexual assault under RSA 632-A:3, II is strict liability as to the complainant’s age; the State need not prove knowledge or any culpable mental state regarding age.
- The court held mistake as to the complainant’s age is not a defense under the statute.
- The court declined to overrule prior decisions interpreting the statute as strict liability, emphasizing stability in the law and legislative acceptance of that interpretation.

## Legal Principles

- When a statute has been consistently construed by precedent, overruling requires a strong showing that the prior interpretation is clearly erroneous and unworkable.
- Under RSA 632-A:3, II, the victim’s being under 16 is an element proved by age alone; mens rea regarding age is not required.
- RSA 626:2, I supplies default culpability requirements unless the legislature has indicated an intent to impose strict liability for a particular element or offense.
- Legislative inaction following repeated statutory amendments may be treated as acceptance of a settled judicial interpretation.
- Statutory rape provisions serve a protective function for minors deemed legally incapable of consenting, supporting strict liability treatment as to age absent legislative change.

## Conclusion

The court affirmed Holmes’s felonious sexual assault conviction, holding that RSA 632-A:3, II imposes strict liability regarding the complainant’s age and does not permit a mistake-of-age defense; any change to add a knowledge requirement or such a defense must come from the legislature.


State v. Holmes, 154 N.H. 723, 920 A.2d 632 (N.H. 2007)