§ 14-183. Bigamy. - North Carolina Statutes

§14‑183.  Bigamy.

If any person, being married,shall marry any other person during the life of the former husband or wife,every such offender, and every person counseling, aiding or abetting suchoffender, shall be punished as a Class I felon.  Any such offense may be dealtwith, tried, determined and punished in the county where the offender shall beapprehended, or be in custody, as if the offense had been actually committed inthat county.  If any person, being married, shall contract a marriage with anyother person outside of this State, which marriage would be punishable asbigamous if contracted within this State, and shall thereafter cohabit withsuch person in this State, he shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punishedas in cases of bigamy.  Nothing contained in this section shall extend to anyperson marrying a second time, whose husband or wife shall have beencontinually absent from such person for the space of seven years then lastpast, and shall not have been known by such person to have been living withinthat time; nor to any person who at the time of such second marriage shall havebeen lawfully divorced from the bond of the first marriage; nor to any personwhose former marriage shall have been declared void by the sentence of any courtof competent jurisdiction. (See 9 Geo. IV, c. 31, s. 22; 1790, c. 323, P.R.;1809, c. 783, P.R.; 1829, c. 9; R.C., c. 34, s. 15; Code, s. 988; Rev., s.3361; 1913, c. 26; C.S., s. 4342; 1979, c. 760, s. 5; 1979, 2nd Sess., c. 1316,s. 47; 1981, c. 63, s. 1, c. 179, s. 14; 1993, c. 539, s. 1193; 1994, Ex.Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c).)