In 2024, a series of alleged sex abuse scandals in Berkshire County schools pushed the issue of protecting young people from predation into the spotlight.
“How can it be that in a forward-thinking state like Massachusetts, we still lack laws that fully protect minors from sexual assault, particularly from adults in positions of trust and authority?" asked Democratic Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue on a virtual press conference Monday.
Last year, his office announced it was unable to prosecute a former teacher at the elite private boarding school Miss Hall’s in Pittsfield due to the commonwealth’s antiquated laws around consent.
“District attorney's offices can only hold criminals accountable when laws criminalize their actions," Shugrue continued. "In Massachusetts, the age of consent is 16, even though individuals are legally minors until they reach the age of 18. 39 other states have this legislation. In Massachusetts, the problem arises because once someone reaches the age of consent, they are legally considered capable of consenting to sexual activity with adults in positions of power in their lives.”
The DA says consent between a young person and an authority figure is not possible.
“Proving a lack of consent becomes nearly impossible," said Shugrue. "Young adults are in the process of discovering who they are. It's natural for them to seek mentorship, guidance and support from trusted adults. Unfortunately, a small but dangerous group of adults seek to exploit this vulnerability. Pedophiles are particularly skilled at grooming their victims, and in Massachusetts, we've seen cases where predators groom minors before they turn 16, and then, upon their 16th birthday, or shortly thereafter, manipulate the victims to enter into a sexual relationship. In what world can a 16-year-old truly consent to sex with a teacher, a coach, or any adult in a position of authority and trust?”
Shugrue has signed on to a larger statewide effort to correct this loophole.
The press conference was a rare opportunity to hear from the DA, who has declined interview requests from WAMC since taking office in 2023.
“This bill, an act relative to sexual assaults by adults in positions of authority or trust, states that a person under the age of 18 cannot be deemed able to consent to sexual activity with a mandated reporter or a person in a position of authority or trust," said Democratic State Senator Joan Lovely of the 2nd Essex district. “These people could be people that are working with our children in our schools, our sports teams, and beyond. And current law does not cover criminal sentencing for perpetrators of sexual abuse of a 14 to 18-year-old by an adult in a position of authority and a trust. The bill calls for perpetrators of assault and battery on a child who was 14 years old and is under 18 to be punished by imprisonment in the state prison system. It would also carry a minimum of 10 years of state prison. In addition, mandated reporters or adults of positions of authority trust who unlawfully have sexual intercourse with an abuse as a child under the age of 16, shall also be sentenced in our system.”
The newest member of the Berkshire state legislative delegation, first-term Democrat Leigh Davis, is also part of the effort.
“During my campaign last year, a troubling case at a private girls’ school in Berkshire County came to light as I knocked on doors," she said. "Residents shared their outrage. A teacher was accused of sexually abusing a student, yet no charges were filed. Why? Because under current state law, a teacher having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old student is not considered a crime. That must change a system that allows adults in positions of power to exploit young people and escape accountability is a broken system.”
Davis represents the 3rd Berkshire District.
“Within my first month in office, I filed House Docket 2209, an act relative to sexual assaults by adults in positions of authority or trust," the state rep continued. "As a companion bill to Senator Lovely’s SD1367, this legislation closes a dangerous gap in our state age of consent laws, one that too often prevents the prosecution of sexual abuse cases involving minors over 16. For me, this is not just policy- It's personal. As a legislator, a former educator and a mother, including to a teenage daughter, I have refused to accept a legal system that protects predators instead of children. No child should ever hear the law won't protect them. No survivor should ever be told their abuser walks free because our laws have failed them.”
Jetta Bernier, who heads child advocacy group Enough Abuse and helped craft the proposed law, noted that the threat to students has only continued to intensify over the last 20 years.
“Back in 2004 to two decades ago, the US Department of Education commissioned a report to take a look at how much sexual abuse was happening within schools," she explained. "The report that was issued by Doctor Shakeshaft – it's now called the Shakeshaft report – indicated that about almost 10%, nearly one in 10 children across the country in public schools, were the victims of sexual misconduct and abuse. However, as bad as that is, a more recent survey that was done in 2023 of over 6,000 recently graduated high school students found that nearly 12%, which is one in 8.5 students, described having had some inappropriate sexual contact in their school with an adult sometime between K through 12. So, we're moving in the wrong direction.”
The Pittsfield public school system – the largest of its kind in Berkshire County – was also rocked by allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior from staffers in 2024. As with Miss Hall’s, investigations remain ongoing.
