Understanding Crimes Against Marriage in Maryland

Maryland is one of a shrinking number of U.S. states that still classifies certain private conduct within marriage as criminal. Specifically,

adultery

and

bigamy

are treated as crimes against marriage under Maryland law.[10] While prosecutions are rare, these offenses remain on the books and can carry legal, financial, and reputational consequences.

This guide explains how Maryland defines these crimes, what the penalties are, how they interact with family-law issues like divorce and child custody, and what practical steps individuals can take to protect themselves and understand their rights.

Overview: What Are Crimes Against Marriage?

In Maryland’s criminal code,

crimes against marriage

sit within a broader category of offenses aimed at protecting public health, conduct, and sensibilities.[10] They focus on conduct that undermines the legal stability of the marital relationship rather than violence or financial wrongdoing.

• Adultery: voluntary sexual intercourse involving a married person and someone other than that person’s spouse.
• Bigamy: entering into a new marriage while already lawfully married to a living spouse.[10]

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Historically, such laws reflected strong moral and religious views about marriage fidelity and monogamy. Although social attitudes and family law have modernized, Maryland retains these criminal provisions, even though they are seldom enforced.

Adultery as a Crime in Maryland

Legal Definition and Elements

Maryland’s criminal statute does not spell out a detailed definition of adultery, but courts and legal practice generally follow the long-standing understanding used in family law:

voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a person other than that person’s spouse

.

In practical terms, the prosecution would need to prove:

• The accused was legally married at the time of the conduct.
• They engaged in sexual intercourse.
• The other participant was not their legal spouse.
• The conduct was voluntary (not coerced).

Emotional affairs, flirting, and non-sexual forms of intimacy, while potentially relevant in divorce proceedings, do not meet the traditional legal threshold for criminal adultery.

Adultery as a Misdemeanor: Penalties

In Maryland, adultery is classified as a misdemeanor and carries a monetary penalty rather than jail time. The maximum penalty referenced in practice is a modest $10 fine, which is extraordinarily low compared with some other states where adultery can carry fines in the thousands of dollars and even imprisonment.

Comparison: Adultery Penalties in Selected U.S. States

Jurisdiction	Criminal Classification	Typical Maximum Penalty
Maryland	Misdemeanor	Fine of about $10; prosecutions rare.
Wisconsin	Felony	Fine up to $10,000 and up to 3.5 years in prison.
Michigan	Felony	Fine up to $5,000 and up to 5 years in prison.
New York	Misdemeanor	Up to 3 months imprisonment and a fine up to $500.

The vast gap between Maryland’s penalty and those in felony adultery states underscores how symbolic Maryland’s adultery offense has become. In practice, criminal charges are extremely rare and often seen as outdated.

How Often Is Adultery Prosecuted?

Although Maryland retains adultery as a criminal offense, enforcement is practically negligible. Most modern legal disputes involving adultery arise in:

• Divorce proceedings, where adultery may be alleged as a fault ground or factor in property division.
• Custody and visitation disputes, where the nature of the relationship and impact on children may be scrutinized.
• Alimony determinations, where marital misconduct can sometimes influence support outcomes.

Criminal prosecution, by contrast, is unusual and often viewed as inconsistent with modern privacy and autonomy norms.

Adultery’s Role in Family Law

Even when adultery is not prosecuted criminally, it can still matter substantially in civil family-law cases. Historically, adultery was a major fault-based ground for divorce across the United States. Many states have now moved to no-fault divorce, but fault factors like adultery may still influence:

• Grounds for divorce: Whether a spouse can allege adultery as cause for the breakdown of the marriage.
• Division of marital property: In some circumstances, egregious conduct may tilt equitable distribution.
• Spousal support (alimony): Courts may consider marital fault when deciding whether and how much support to award.
• Credibility assessments: A spouse’s honesty about an affair can affect how judges view testimony generally.

Thus, even a rarely enforced criminal statute can indirectly shape outcomes in civil cases by reinforcing the legal relevance of marital fidelity.

Bigamy: Marrying While Already Married

Core Legal Definition

Bigamy is treated much more seriously than adultery in Maryland. Under state law and similar frameworks in other jurisdictions,

bigamy

means entering into a new marriage while already lawfully married to a living spouse.[10]

In Maryland, a person commits bigamy when:

• They have a valid existing marriage to another person.
• That prior spouse is still alive.
• They participate in a subsequent marriage ceremony purporting to create a new lawful marriage.

By contrast, merely cohabiting with someone else, or having multiple relationships without additional marriage ceremonies, does not automatically constitute bigamy under the criminal framework, though it may have other legal implications.

Bigamy as a Felony: Penalties and Consequences

Maryland classifies bigamy as a felony, reflecting the seriousness with which the law treats fraudulent or overlapping marital commitments.[10] The statute authorizes imprisonment for up to nine years on conviction.

Other U.S. jurisdictions impose a mix of misdemeanor and felony penalties, with some distinguishing between benign and fraudulent second marriages. For example, California treats bigamy as a criminal offense under Penal Code 281 and allows sentencing as either a misdemeanor or felony depending on circumstances and intent.

In practice, the potential consequences of a bigamy conviction can extend beyond the statutory prison term:

• Immigration impact: Bigamy is often categorized as a crime of moral turpitude, which can trigger deportation or bar immigration benefits for non-citizens.
• Professional licensing risk: Certain regulated professions (law, medicine, real estate, teaching) may impose discipline or revoke licenses for felony convictions involving dishonesty or moral turpitude.
• Reputational harm: Multiple simultaneous marriages typically attract social and media attention, harming personal and professional relationships.

Statutory Exceptions: When Bigamy Law Does Not Apply

Maryland law recognizes that there are circumstances where entering a new marriage, despite a prior marriage, should not be treated as criminal. The bigamy statute does not apply if:

• The prior spouse has been absent continuously for seven years; and
• The person entering the new marriage does not know where the prior spouse is living at the time of the second ceremony.

This type of exception reflects older legal assumptions about limited communication, where a spouse might genuinely disappear and be presumed dead or permanently missing. Modern statutes in other states provide similar relief when a spouse has long been absent and presumed deceased or when the defendant reasonably believed the first marriage had been dissolved.

Defenses and Good-Faith Mistakes

Even outside the formal exceptions, defendants sometimes raise

good-faith belief

defenses, especially in jurisdictions like California where case law recognizes reasonable reliance on a belief that a prior marriage was dissolved.

Common defensive themes include:

• Belief that the first marriage was annulled or void due to procedural or jurisdictional defects.
• Reasonable reliance on a divorce decree, later found to be invalid due to technical errors.
• Long-term absence of the first spouse with no contact and credible grounds to presume death.

While specific defenses depend on Maryland case law and statutes, these examples from other jurisdictions illustrate how courts may differentiate intentional fraud from understandable mistake.

Policy Context: Why These Laws Still Exist

Historical Roots of Adultery and Bigamy Laws

Crimes against marriage have deep historical roots. Adultery laws once served to enforce religious norms, protect legitimacy of children, and uphold patriarchal property interests in wives and offspring. Bigamy rules, similarly, aimed to prevent fraudulent inheritance claims, unauthorized polygamy, and confusion about marital rights.

Over time, as divorce became more accessible and gender equality advanced, states began repealing or softening many morality-based statutes. Yet some remnants, like Maryland’s adultery and bigamy provisions, remain.

Modern Critiques and Reform Trends

Contemporary scholars and advocates question the utility of criminalizing consensual sexual and marital behavior among adults. Legal commentary notes that in many jurisdictions, adultery is rarely prosecuted and increasingly viewed as inconsistent with constitutional privacy protections.

Key critiques include:

• Privacy concerns: Government intrusion into consensual adult relationships may conflict with modern understandings of civil liberties.
• Selective enforcement: Rare prosecutions raise concerns about arbitrary or politically motivated use of these laws.
• Redundancy: Civil remedies through divorce, property division, and custody determinations already address harms caused by marital misconduct.

Despite these concerns, some policymakers defend retaining such laws as symbolic affirmations of marital commitment, even if they are seldom used.

Practical Implications for Maryland Residents

When You Should Seek Legal Advice

Anyone in Maryland who is:

• Considering remarriage after a long separation from a prior spouse,
• Unsure whether a prior marriage was legally dissolved, or
• Facing accusations of adultery or bigamy in a divorce or custody dispute,

should seek professional legal advice. Questions about marriage validity, divorce decrees from other jurisdictions, and long-term separations can be complex and may carry both civil and criminal consequences.

Key Precautions to Avoid Legal Risk

• Confirm divorce status: Obtain certified copies of divorce or annulment orders before entering a new marriage.
• Understand separation vs. divorce: Physical separation does not dissolve a marriage; only legal processes do.
• Document long absences: If a spouse has been missing for years, maintain records of attempts to locate them and consult counsel before remarrying.
• Be honest in legal filings: Misrepresenting marital status in immigration, licensing, or court forms can compound liability.

FAQs: Crimes Against Marriage in Maryland

Is adultery really still a crime in Maryland?

Yes. Adultery remains a misdemeanor criminal offense in Maryland, punishable by a small fine (about $10), although prosecutions are extremely rare.

Can I go to jail for adultery in Maryland?

Maryland’s typical penalty for adultery is a fine rather than imprisonment, and modern practice rarely involves criminal charges. Other states, however, do authorize jail time for adultery.

What happens if I accidentally marry someone while still married?

If you enter into a marriage while already lawfully married to a living spouse, you may technically meet the definition of bigamy. However, the specific outcome depends on whether statutory exceptions or good-faith defenses apply, and whether prosecutors choose to pursue the case.

Does adultery affect my divorce case?

Adultery can be relevant in divorce proceedings as a ground for divorce or as a factor in property division and support, even when it is not prosecuted criminally. Its weight varies by case and judicial discretion.

Is bigamy always a felony in Maryland?

Under Maryland law, bigamy is classified as a felony and can be punished by imprisonment for up to nine years.[10] The exact sentence in any case would depend on facts and judicial discretion.

What if my spouse has been missing for years?

Maryland law provides that the bigamy statute does not apply if your prior spouse has been absent continuously for seven years and you do not know where they are living at the time of the new marriage. You should still consult an attorney to confirm how this applies to your situation.