When Melissa Fares and Hilary Simon first accused Matthew Rutledge of grooming and raping them while he was their teacher at Miss Hall’s School in March 2024, Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue claimed, under state law, the longtime teacher hadn’t acted criminally given that his students were above the legal age of consent in Massachusetts of 16 at the time of the alleged behavior. The decision sparked outcry, and demands for lawmakers to finally pass legislation that would remove a shield for potential perpetrators of sexual contact with children in their care. Last month’s news that Rutledge had been indicted on three counts of rape gave his survivors cause to celebrate, but, as Fares told WAMC, their eyes are locked on the continued push to protect future generations of students in the commonwealth.
“This is movement, but the law needs to catch up," said Fares. "It's pathetic and just completely a disgrace for Massachusetts. But I want to be optimistic, and I really do think that there is hope, and that this bill will pass. But we never should have had to fight this hard. This loophole needs to die.”
A Berkshire County legislator is involved in the ongoing effort.
“The legislation has been years in the making. It was first filed back in the ’21 - ‘22 session, and now it's in the third session that it's been worked on," said Democrat Leigh Davis, who took office in 2025 and serves the Southern Berkshires as the 3rd Berkshire District state representative in Boston. “It's a collaborative effort across the legislature, and along with the advocates and law enforcement and educators, we're all working to address the gaps in the law, and that this process didn't happen in a vacuum. The recent indictment of Matthew Rutledge was a stark and sobering reminder for me, personally, why this work matters. And working with Hillary Simon and Melissa Fares, it reinforces what so many survivors have been saying, that we need clearer protections and stronger boundaries in the law.”
The legislation has two sections.
“One section is both focused on school policies and abuse prevention training," explained Davis. "So, we're really looking at ensuring that the folks that are coming into our schools don't have a history of abuse, that the schools have the tools they need to establish clear policies, and that there is abuse prevention training.”
The second section of the bill focuses on sexual misconduct by trusted adults.
“And what that does is it creates a new criminal offense for any person in a position of authority or trust who is over the age of 21 to engage in any sexual activity or make any contact with those that are in the school system,” Davis said.
Currently, the legislation is in the hands of the House Ways and Means committee.
“They're doing very careful due diligence on the bill," the state rep told WAMC. "They're speaking with advocates and stakeholders and state agencies like DESE and DCF. And my part of the process is that I've been working very collaboratively throughout the process to make sure that the final bill, if it does come to the floor, is very strong and clear and effective as possible, and that it addresses what we're hearing in our community. So, we're just really making sure that all the details are thoughtful and that all the stakeholders and agencies and colleagues are being listened to.”
Those stakeholders encompass entities both inside the Massachusetts legislature and among the communities of the commonwealth.
“I've been meeting with the different teachers’ unions, I've been having conversations with the Enough Abuse child advocacy organization, and being a conduit for some of the stories that I've been hearing from our communities, and also being a connector with the legislature and the different organizations," said Davis. "So, we feel like there's momentum, but there's a lot of work to do.”
Davis told WAMC she couldn’t make any promises that the effort to close the consent loophole would be realized by the end of the current session.
“I'm just doing my work," she said. "I'm keeping my head down and doing all that I can. So, I can't really comment on where it is in terms of the process, if it's going to be coming to the floor, but I just know that I'm digging in and I'm not going to let go. So, a lot of really, really detailed and intense conversations happening at the moment, and from that point, we'll have to wait and see.”
WAMC asked Davis what roadblocks might impede legislation aimed at protecting young people from being sexually exploited by adults charged with protecting them.
“Talking to, let's say, the different organizations such as Enough Abuse, there's always kind of a sense that we could do more, or, while we're addressing child abuse, could we look at this?" she said. "So, with this comprehensive bill that's really focused now on hiring and training and policies, there are some thoughts that maybe there could be more in the bill.”
Survivors like Hilary Simon say they’ll keep the pressure on lawmakers for as long as it takes to get the loophole closed.
“People need to keep talking about this, and need to make it so visible that the law passes so the next generation is protected,” she told WAMC.
The Massachusetts legislative session ends on July 31.
