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Statutory rape is one criminal offense that can easily ruin your life. This kind of
sexual activity occurs between someone who is over the age of 16 and someone
who is under the age of 16. In Massachusetts, you will notice that there is a
distinct difference between child rape which is intercourse between younger
children that is never consensual and intercourse that is consensual between an
older person and a teenager. The cases are often going to be taken more serious
depending on the age of both the defendant and the victim; the younger the
child and the older the adult the worse the penalties can be.
If
you are dealing with charges of statutory rape, you need to take the time to
get a criminal defense lawyer. There are some defenses that you can use that
can help you out and ensures that you don’t carry this kind of criminal offense
around for the rest of your life.
Defenses
When
you hire a criminal defense lawyer, there are a few different defenses that can
be used in your case for statutory rape. These include:
The
age of the defendant—many states are going to have Romeo and Juliet exception that will protect
younger couples who are having consensual intercourse with others who are about
their age. This could help if one of the partners is a few years older, but
they are still old enough to be consensual.
Marriage—if
the child and the defendant are married, it is hard to come up with charges of
statutory rape. Keep in mind that Massachusetts doesn’t have this kind of
defense so even if you are married, this could cause some issues.
Mistake
of the child’s age—this is usually not a defense, but in some cases, you may be
able to get help if you were led to believe that the child was older than they
are before having the consensual intercourse.
Punishment
There
are many different punishments that can be levied if you are charged and
convicted of statutory rape. This can go from time in jail, even up to life in
jail and some fees. It is often going to depend on how the charges are brought
up. For example, rape of a child is going to be capable of life imprisonment
and aggravated rape would be at least ten years. In addition, indecent battery
against a child who is younger than 14 can be up to ten years in prison. The
courts are going to get the chance to pick out the punishment that they would
like to give you based on the case at hand.
Sex Offender Status
If
you are convicted of statutory rape, this is something that could go on your
legal record for the rest of your life. This is going to be placed on the sex
offender registration list and will follow you around. You will not be allowed
to live in certain areas and they will not allow you to have certain jobs. This
could be something that ruins your life because of one mistake.
This
is why it is so important to get the right legal counsel that you need right
away. The right criminal lawyer will be able to look at your case and come up
with the legal case that is going to work the best for you and to get your
punishments down as much as possible. Contact a criminal defense lawyer in your
area to get started on a good defense and to get your charges reduced or
dropped as quickly as possible rather than letting this follow you around for
years to come.
Barnstable County,
Massachusetts, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Bristol County, Massachusetts,
Dukes County, Massachusetts, Essex County, Massachusetts, Franklin County,
Massachusetts, Hampden County, Massachusetts, Hampshire County, Massachusetts,
Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Town and County of Nantucket, Massachusetts,
Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, Suffolk County,
Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts
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