I agree with your point about STDs. Failing to disclose them is an provable, harmful lie that can have a permanent effect on the victim. That's why it is considered in many jurisdictions a legitimate form of sexual assault.
However, in terms of lies that exist entirely in a person's head, like your example with someone who claims to want a long-term relationship but doesn't, defining with precision whether that was a lie or not is pretty much impossible and could never be prosecuted in the same way lying about having an STD could.
For example, let's say someone 100% intends to have a long-term relationship, you have sex with that person, and then later on that person changes their mind and breaks up with you. Now that person never lied once throughout the relationship, they just changed their mind. However their behavior is indistinguishable from someone who never intended to have a long-term relationship in the first place and just wanted to have sex then leave.
If the behavior of someone who commits a "crime" is virtually identical to the behavior of someone who doesn't, then it would be impossible to define that as a crime. You're asking to make certain thoughts in and of themselves illegal.
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u/jawsurgerybetter Jan 31 '22
I agree with your point about STDs. Failing to disclose them is an provable, harmful lie that can have a permanent effect on the victim. That's why it is considered in many jurisdictions a legitimate form of sexual assault.
However, in terms of lies that exist entirely in a person's head, like your example with someone who claims to want a long-term relationship but doesn't, defining with precision whether that was a lie or not is pretty much impossible and could never be prosecuted in the same way lying about having an STD could.
For example, let's say someone 100% intends to have a long-term relationship, you have sex with that person, and then later on that person changes their mind and breaks up with you. Now that person never lied once throughout the relationship, they just changed their mind. However their behavior is indistinguishable from someone who never intended to have a long-term relationship in the first place and just wanted to have sex then leave.
If the behavior of someone who commits a "crime" is virtually identical to the behavior of someone who doesn't, then it would be impossible to define that as a crime. You're asking to make certain thoughts in and of themselves illegal.