Under Virginia law, multiple acts are legal if performed between two consenting adults but unlawful if one or both parties are minors. For example, a person who engages in any act of sexual intercourse, including penetration with an object, with a child who is at least thirteen but under fifteen years old, can be charged with carnal knowledge of a child between thirteen and fifteen. Notably, force is not an element of this offense. In other words, the sexual act in question is unlawful due to the victim’s age, regardless of whether they consent.

The severity of the offense and the potential penalty a person charged with carnal knowledge faces depend on the respective parties’ ages. If the accused is an adult, they will be charged with a Class 4 felony, and if they are found guilty may face up to twenty years in prison. If both parties are minors and there are less than three years difference between the ages of the perpetrator and the victim, carnal knowledge of a child between thirteen and fifteen is a Class 4 misdemeanor punishable by a $250 fine. If there is greater than a three year age difference between the parties, carnal knowledge of a child between thirteen and fifteen is a Class 6 penalty, which can result in a prison sentence of up to five years.

Other sex crimes with minors include sexual abuse of a child under thirteen years of age, which is when an adult commits an act of sexual abuse with a child between the ages of thirteen and fifteen, aggravated sexual battery, and taking indecent liberties with a child.