Model Courtney Stodden, who was married off to a 51-year-old actor at 16, is urging California lawmakers to finally end child marriage. A bipartisan bill before the California State Senate would establish 18 as the minimum legal age for marriage without exceptions.
Stodden has spoken openly about the lasting impact of marrying as a child, describing how she was groomed, manipulated, and trapped. Now, she is calling for legal protections to ensure no child experiences the same harm. “Children deserve laws that protect them.” If passed, California would become the 18th state in the US to outlaw child marriage.
Renewed attention fuels calls for change
Stodden’s call made headlines following a recent public apology from actor Jason Alexander for an inappropriate 2012 comedy sketch. In the sketch, Alexander, best known for playing George Costanza in Seinfeld, made sexual jokes about 17-year-old Stodden’s body. Responding to his apology, Stodden said, “meaningful action would be even more powerful,” urging Alexander to support the bill.
Though he did not make a statement about the bill, Alexander reportedly donated to survivor-led non-profit Unchained at Last, which leads the fight against child marriage in the US.
Stodden has long been outspoken about the lasting harm caused by child marriage. Newsweek reports:
“I’ve been scared to even speak up about feeling groomed or being verbally abused during the almost 10-year marriage because I was a child and he was 50 when we married… I’ve felt completely trapped, manipulated and at times abandoned by adults. Growing up in such an environment—it became a lonely and dark place.”
At just 16, Stodden married 51-year-old actor Doug Hutchison after her parents consented, as permitted by California law. California is one of four states with no minimum age for marriage. She remained in the marriage for nearly a decade before the couple divorced in 2020.
Stodden is one of the most visible survivors calling for an end to child marriage but she’s just one of many. Fellow survivors and other advocates, including the Freedom United community, have been pushing California lawmakers to end child marriage for years.
Republican and Democratic policymakers in California joined the movement, introducing Assembly Bill AB 1267 to the state legislature last year. The bill is currently before a committee and is two steps away from becoming law.
The US still behind on child marriage
Until 2018, every US state allowed child marriage. Thanks to relentless advocacy led front and center by survivors, 17 states have banned the practice. But 33 states still remain.
Between 2000 and 2021, nearly 315,000 minors were married in the US. Nearly 35,000 of those marriages took place in California. Whilst not all child marriages are forced, the inherent vulnerability of children, particularly girls, makes them susceptible to coercion. Further, children are especially vulnerable because minors often cannot independently file for divorce, retain their own attorney, or access domestic violence shelters without an adult’s consent.
No one should force a child into a marriage. Join Freedom United in calling on US lawmakers to end child marriage without exceptions. Sign our petition now!
Editor’s note: Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1267 into law on September 30, 2026.
Check the status of child marriage laws in your state.
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