Kaitlyn Hunt, the 18-year-old Florida cheerleader facing felony charges for a sexual relationship she had with a younger girl, has refused to take a plea deal in the case, her lawyers said Friday.

Hunt now must go to court to face two charges of lewd and lascivious battery on a minor. If convicted, shefaces up to 15 years in prison and would haveto register as a sex offender.

Under the deal offered by a Florida state attorney, Hunt would have to submit to house arrest for two years. She also would be labeled as a convicted felon and be required to attend sex offender counseling.



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"This is a situation of two teenagers who happen to be of the same sex involved in a relationship," according to a statement released by Hunt's attorneys, Julia Graves and Joseph Graves. "If this case involved a boy and girl, there would be no media attention to this case."

The statement went on to say that if Hunt's relationship had occurred "108 days earlier when she was 17, we wouldn’t even be here."

But the attorney representing the minor, who is now 15, said the case is strictly about the law.

"This is a violation of the law that's based upon an adult having sexual relations with a minor," Charles Sullivan told TODAY earlier this week. "Gender, sexual orientation of the parties has absolutely nothing to do with the prosecution."

In an interview with NBC's Kerry Sanders that aired Thursday, Hunt hinted at her unhappiness with the deal offered to her by state prosecutors.

“I’m definitely hoping for a better plea deal, but if not, then we’ll just have to do everything that we can do to win the fight,” she said.



