Sarah Guazzo (in blue), 29, was acquitted of three charges of procuring a child for carnal knowledge
A married female teacher was able to get away with having sex with a 16-year-old student because of Queensland's 'archaic' carnal knowledge laws, a leading legal expert claims.
Sarah Joy Guazzo, 29, was found not guilty of three charges of 'procuring' a child for sex at a high school in Townsville, north Queensland.
The jury took only 15 minutes to acquit Ms Guazzo of three charges of procuring a young person for carnal knowledge after the defence argued the boy was a 'willing' participant.
National Child Sexual Assault Reform Committee Professor Anne Cossins said the case showed the law was flawed as the power imbalance was not addressed.
She said under New South Wales reforms a teacher involved in the same incident would be charged under a law it would be illegal to have sex with a person aged 16 to 18 under 'special care'.
'When it is a relationship of authority and when you have someone under your care in that regard, you should not be having sex with them. It really is as simple as that,' she told ABC.
A text message the court heard Ms Guazzo sent to the 16-year-old student
Ms Guazzo's employer declined to comment on the court case but said she was taking time off this week
As Ms Guazzo was a member of the teaching staff, all the prosecution would have to prove was that sexual intercourse occurred, Professor Cossins said.
'Under the New South Wales law, willingness is not an element of this particular offence.'
The Queensland Criminal Code defines as carnal knowledge: 'A person who procures a person who is not an adult or is a person with an impairment of the mind to engage in carnal knowledge (either in Queensland or elsewhere) commits a crime.'
Professor Cossins said the laws were outdated as they were introduced back in the 1800s.
A Royal Commission into Institution Responses to Child Sexual Abuse from 2017 recommended state governments review 'any position of authority offences applying in circumstances where the victim is 16 or 17 years of age and the offender is in a position of authority in relation to the victim'.
However, Queensland has not acted on initiating any review.
Professor Cossins said she hoped the Attorney-General would take on board the recommendations and would enact a provision that would cover this sort of abuse of authority.
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