Choose To Keep Your Freedom Brochure
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format version You may be surprised that choices you make today may have life-long consequences.
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Penalties for breaking the law include, but are not limited to:
- Possible Incarceration
- Possible Commitment to the Department of Youth Services
- Monetary Fine
- Loss of License and/or Eligibility to Get a License
- Permanent Juvenile or Criminal Record
Your Record
A criminal or juvenile record can prevent you from getting a job or joining the military. If you are 17 or older and commit a crime, you are considered an adult and you will be subject to adult penalties including the possibility of going to prison. If you are under 17 and commit a crime, you may be committed to the Department of Youth Services (DYS).
Alcohol and Other Drugs
Using alcohol or other drugs is a decision that could result in a criminal record.
Q: If I use someone else’s license or other ID to buy alcohol, have I broken a law?
A: Yes. It is a felony to have a fake or altered I.D. Penalties can include loss of driver’s license, possible commitment to the Department of Youth Services, house of correction, or state prison.
Q: What if I attend a party where there is underage drinking but I don’t drink any alcohol?
A: You could still be charged with being a minor in possession of alcohol, even if you are not actually drinking or holding alcohol.
Q: What if I have a party and underage guests (under the age of 21) bring alcohol?
A: It is illegal to serve, provide or furnish alcohol to underage guests or to allow them to drink alcohol in your home or on property you control. The penalty for you and your parents is a fine up to $2,000, incarceration for up to a year, or both. You and your parents could also be sued.
Q: If I drive friends to a party and they put beer in my trunk, what can happen to me?
A: It is illegal to transport alcohol if you are under the age of 21. If convicted, your driver’s license will be suspended for 90 days. You can be fined and you will have a juvenile or criminal record.
Q: What can happen if my friends are drinking in my car? You can not allow people to drink in your car. If you and your friends are under 21 and they are drinking in your car, you are a minor transporting or possessing alcohol. If convicted, your driver’s license will be suspended for 90 days. You can be fined and you may have a juvenile or criminal record.
Q: What if my friend asks me to hold an illegal drug, and I give it back to him later?
A: Don’t accept it! Once you accept it, you are in possession. Don’t pass it on! If you pass it on to someone, you have distributed drugs knowingly and intentionally.
Q: What if I give one of my prescription drugs or an illegal drug to another person?
A: You do not have to sell drugs to be guilty of distribution. And, if you are found guilty of distributing on school grounds, you may face a mandatory sentence that includes commitment to the Department of Youth Services as a juvenile and to a house of correction or a state prison as an adult.
Other Criminal Behavior
Q: What if I put graffiti on a public building or private property?
A: If you put graffiti on anyone else’s property, public or private, you have committed the crime of tagging. If convicted, you may face possible incarceration up to two years in a house of correction or a fine of at least $1,500. In addition, your driver’s license will be suspended for one year. If you do not have a license, you will have to wait an extra year to get one.
Q: What if I bully or harass someone because I think they are different from me or my friends?
A: This may be a hate crime. A hate crime is a criminal act against a person or property in which the perpetrator chooses the victim because of the victim’s real or perceived race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability or gender. There are a variety of penalties for this kind of conduct, including incarceration and commitment to the Department of Youth Services.
Think Before You Send!
The Internet is a useful and powerful tool. But, messages you send and images you post on the Internet are not necessarily private.
The information you post online or send via email, text, or instant message may end up in the hands of your family, friends, teachers, acquaintances, and complete strangers, as well as potential employers, colleges, and law enforcement.
THINK before you SEND!
Ask yourself, “Would I want this message or image widely distributed?”
Once you hit SEND, you lose control.
Did you know that …
sending threatening or harassing messages, by text, email or social networking site, and/or posting and/ or disseminating certain images including sexual, nude or partially nude images of yourself or someone else
…could cross the line and become criminal.
You may be charged with a crime such as criminal harassment, threatening to commit a crime, or possession or distribution of child pornography, or you may have to register as a sex offender. Penalties for these crimes can include incarceration or commitment to the Department of Youth Services.
Developed by:
Essex District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett
Massachusetts Department of Elementary
and Secondary Education
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Bureau of Substance Abuse Services
Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety
and Security
For more information about prevention and treatment for substance abuse, contact:
Massachusetts Substance Abuse Information and Education Helpline
1-800-327-5050
TTY 1-617-536-5872
www.helpline-online.com
For additional copies of this pamphlet, call:
Essex District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett
1-978-745-6610
TTY 1-978-741-3163
www.mass.gov/essexda
Executive Office of Public Safety and Security
1-617-725-3363
TTY 1-617-725-0261
Massachusetts Health Promotion Clearinghouse
1-800-952-6637
TTY 1-617-536-5872
www.maclearinghouse.com
Jonathan W. Blodgett Essex District Attorney
Ten Federal Street | Salem, MA 01970
978-745-6610 | www.mass.gov/essexda
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