Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney Blog
The principal of the Rockport, Massachusetts middle school last week reported that a student had come forward with information regarding a New Year’s Eve incident at the Cape Ann Marina. Gloucester, Massachusetts police investigated and ultimately charged Justin Todd of Pleasant Street in Gloucester with Rape of a Child. It is alleged that Todd bought alcohol for some teenagers and had sex with one of them four times that night. The girl with whom Todd purportedly had sex was fourteen years old. He was arraigned in the Gloucester District Court and held on twenty thousand dollars cash bail. Four charges of Rape of a Child and one count of Providing Alcohol to a Minor is pending at this time. This case will probably be indicted and prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court in Salem, Massachusetts.
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Gloucester, Massachusetts Rape Defense Law Firm
Essex County Sex Crimes Lawyer, Rape, Statutory Rape, Indecent Assault and Battery
Massachusetts has a broad definition of the term Rape. It encompasses penetration of the female sex organ by the male sex organ with or without emission. It also includes anal intercourse, oral intercourse, cunnilingus, fellatio, digital penetration and penetration by objects other than body parts. The age of consent in Massachusetts is sixteen, meaning that regardless of the intent or will of the minor a Rape charge can be successfully prosecuted. The element of penetration can be satisfied by showing contact with the labia, vulva or vagina. Statutory Rape in Massachusetts is set out in Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 23. A conviction for this offense is a felony. There is another Massachusetts Statutory Rape Statute that addresses aggravating factors that is not applicable to this case. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265 Section 23A states that if there is a five year age difference between the defendant and the victim and the victim was under twelve at the time a conviction mandates a ten year state prison sentence. Consent is not a defense to Statutory Rape in Massachusetts. Nor is a mistaken belief in the victim’s age a valid defense. This again shows why anyone being investigated for a crime should not talk. All too often people admit to having sex with someone because the act was “consensual” and they believed the person to be old enough to consent. However, when they admit to having sex with the underaged person they are essentially admitting to having committed Rape. In Massachusetts you will be prosecuted for Statutory Rape. There are defenses to these charges making it important for anyone accused of a Sex Crime in Massachusetts to contact an Experienced Massachusetts Criminal Lawyer at once.
The Law Offices of Stephen Neyman has over twenty-five years experience defending people accused of all crimes, including Sex Crimes, Rape and Statutory Rape. Call us at 617-263-6800 or send us an email. Start your defense with our office right away.