SEATED IN THE BACK row of a courtroom in the basement of the Santa Clara County courthouse, a young couple talks quietly while waiting for the judge to arrive. A blue baby stroller packed with blankets rests next to them. As they talk, they take turns holding a tiny child, discernible only by his shock of thick, dark hair.

These young people are in court because their very existence as a couple violates the law. Juan Jose Jiminez is 22. His wife, Luz Delia Lopez, is 17. Jiminez was arrested for having consensual sex with Lopez before they were married. The crime was statutory rape, sex with a minor. If he is convicted of the felony charge, he could spend six months or more in the county