Too young to marry?

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BY NATE JENKINS / Lincoln Journal Star

It's a line not likely to land in the state's promotional brochure: Come to Kansas, girls, where you can get hitched at age 12. Thanks to a Falls City love affair that has raised the ire of Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, however, the marriage age could land on that state's legislative to-do list.

"We probably ought to discuss it," said one Kansas lawmaker, Rep. John Faber. He represents five counties in northwest Kansas that border Nebraska. "Some laws just don't make any sense."

The one in question came to light last week when Bruning announced he filed a rape charge against a 22-year-old Falls City man who married his pregnant, 14-year-old girlfriend. They didn't tie the knot in their home state, because the law wouldn't allow it. The minimum marriage age in Nebraska, with parental consent, is 17.

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Matthew Koso rests on the pregnant belly of his 14-year-old wife, Crystal Koso. (Krista Niles)

Matthew Koso rests on the pregnant belly of his 14-year-old wife, Crystal Koso. (Krista Niles)

Not so in Kansas, where the couple married in May. In the sunflower state, the bar is set at 12 years old, with parental consent; boys have to wait until they're 14.

"I didn't realize it was that young," said another Kansas lawmaker, Rep. Sharon Schwartz. She has two border counties, Marshall and Washington, in her northeast Kansas district.

"I'd probably be supportive" of raising the age, she added.

Should Kansas raise the marriage-age limit, it would be more in line with other states. According to information compiled by the Cornell University Legal Information Institute, only one other state, Massachusetts, has a minimum age  of 12 for girls, with parental consent. No state has a minimum below 12 years.

The most common minimum age with parental consent is 16, putting Nebraska's law close to par with other states, and most of its neighbors. The border states of Iowa, South Dakota and Colorado have 16 as the minimum age, with parental consent.

Not a lot of pre-pubescent girls have taken advantage of the lenient Kansas law in recent years. In 2003, the most recent year for which data is available, just five girls younger than 15 got married in Kansas, according to Sharon Watson, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. There were three in 2002.

Asked to pick what he thought was a reasonable age fellow Kansas lawmakers should consider, Faber said 16.

"That's a lifetime away from 12 years old."

Reach Nate Jenkins at 473-7223 or njenkins@journalstar.com.