Living with a sexually transmitted infection (STD) can force you to make some tough decisions from time to time, but… Is it illegal not to tell someone you have an STD? before you have sex? Although it affects millions of people, an STD diagnosis is understandably not a popular topic of conversation among casual acquaintances. And while we’re not saying you should disclose your medical history to everyone you meet, informing sexual partners is a different story. Is it illegal to hide an STD from your partner? It is certainly possible – depending on the state, which STD can be transmitted and whether or not there is premeditation. If someone deliberately exposes another to a sexually transmitted disease, this can lead to legal action. Such harmful acts may be punishable in criminal or civil courts.
STD Disclosure Laws
Criminal law
Many states have laws on the books that prohibit the transmission of at least certain STDs (particularly HIV), but the details of the laws vary widely from state to state. To provide some perspective, 26 states within the US have some kind of law regarding the criminal transmission of HIV. Also according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 19 states require people with HIV to inform their sexual partners as of 2018. In general, this means that if you are consciously living with HIV, you should not act in a way that would endanger others. become infected. This includes unprotected sexual activity, needle sharing, and any other act that involves passing bodily fluids from one person to another.
An infected person who commits these acts can be charged with criminal transmission of an STD in many jurisdictions.
For example the Tennessee Department of Health considers the “criminal exposure of another to HIV as a Class C misdemeanor.” While a Class C misdemeanor Although the penalty is the mildest sentence, there have been more serious cases. In these more extreme cases, people have even been charged and convicted of attempted murder (although these cases are rare and typically involve not only reckless, but blatantly malicious actions on the part of the suspect).
However, not all concerns relate specifically to HIV. For example, California recently underwent a change in its criminal law when it comes to the transmission of STDs. As of 2018, the state of California believes that all STDs are grounds for criminal charges and not just HIV.
However, if you do not know that you have one of these diseases, and it can be proven in court that you actually did not know, you cannot be criminally prosecuted for passing the disease on to someone else.
Again, most of the cases you hear about in the media regarding the criminal transmission of an STD specifically involve HIV, as most states criminalize the transmission of the virus to some extent. With regard to other STDs, states will generally be less strict STD Disclosure Laws (or any laws at all), but that does not give you the right or legal permission to act in a sexually reckless or dangerous manner. Research the regulations in your home state for specific information on this, but also think carefully about your body and how you affect other people.
Civil right
Lawsuits are common in the United States, and people have been charged with passing on an STD to someone else, whether or not a criminal case has been filed. These cases may be more common around non-life-threatening STDs or STDs, such as chlamydia or herpes. Cases like these are typically charged as one of three violations: negligence, assault, or fraud. In a nutshell, one could ask the following questions in each case:
- Negligence: Did the defendant have and disregard a duty to disclose a sexual partner’s STD diagnoses?
- Battery: Did the defendant cause bodily harm to the plaintiff by transmitting an STD?
- Fraud: Did the suspect deliberately conceal a partner or lie about having an STD in a deceptive attempt at sexual intercourse?
Whether these lawsuits are successful can of course vary greatly. Each case involves different evidence, different arguments, different determinations and different results. So as useful as it may be, it would be virtually impossible to make this a black and white topic with clear answers one way or another. Therefore, it is easier to simply be honest with your partners about your status so that no one feels cheated or harmed in the first place.
Our takeaway
No matter what STD Disclosure Laws looks like in your situation, it is better to remain open and honest with your partner about your sexual health and history. By being honest, you take the right precautions to ensure that you both stay as safe as possible. This means following safe sex practices and getting tested for sexually transmitted diseases and infections, if necessary. Remember, just because an action or lack thereof isn’t technically “illegal” doesn’t mean it’s right. Take the extra step towards sexual health being tested today with priority STD.