Legal Question in Discrimination Law in Massachusetts

There is the law...and then there is good old fashion common sense.

Here is the law: Statutory Rape is a very specific offense and it requires very specific things to occur. If you want to read the law google MGL chapter 263 section 23. Short answer, kissing is not statutory rape.

There is another law you might want to google, MGL chapter 272 section 35A. This law has to do with what happens when someone under 16 does "other stuff" with someone 18.

Kissing your boyfriend as you described it in your question is not going to trigger either law.

Now, for the common sense: First off, congratulations to you for wanting to become informed about an issue. That shows intelligence on your part. Based on the fact that you obviously have a brain, and are willing to use it, my advice is to have a candid conversation about this with your parents/guardians or your boyfriend's parents or some other adult you respect or trust. The laws that I referenced above are not there to prevent a boy and girl from kissing each other - they exist because there are unfortunately people in our society who abuse relationships and the laws also exist because no one wants to see a young person get hurt (emotionally or physically). They also exist because even two reasonable young people (like you and your boyfriend) can make a mistake or let a situation that starts off innocent go too far. So, in some ways these laws offer some good common sense advice as well; they want you to think about what could happen. Since you clearly care about your relationship, take the time to talk about it openly and you should be able to come up with a plan for the next eight months.

I'm sure you wanted a more legal answer than "go talk to your parents," but for your questions, that's the best I can to do.

Lastly, I will say that if you feel there is a reason you simply cannot speak to your parents about this, then consider talking to someone in your guidance office at school or even to a police officer - they are trained far better than lawyers to help put you in touch with someone who can really help you.

Good luck.