Most states make it a criminal offense (statutory rape) to have sexual intercourse with a person under the age of consent—which is usually between 16 and 18 years of age. These laws are premised on the belief that a person under the age of consent is not capable of giving informed consent to sexual intercourse—even if the person was a willing participant. Statutory rape may be prosecuted as a misdemeanor offense or as a felony offense—depending on the state’s laws and the ages and circumstances of the sexual activity.

But many states recognize a defense to such a criminal offense if the persons engaged in the sexual activity were close in age—within three years, for example—provided the persons were at least 14 years of age, for example. These laws are sometimes called Romeo-and-Juliet laws, and are usually located in a state’s statutes, in the penal or criminal code.

In Hawaii, the age of consent is 16 years old, which means that any sexual intercourse with a person under this age may constitute statutory rape, a criminal offense. Hawaii law recognizes statutory rape as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on various factors such as the ages of the individuals involved and the circumstances of the sexual activity. Hawaii does have a 'close-in-age' exemption, commonly known as a Romeo-and-Juliet law, which provides a defense for individuals who engage in consensual sexual activity when they are close in age. Specifically, if one partner is at least 14 years old and the other is not more than five years older, they may be exempt from prosecution for statutory rape. This exemption is designed to prevent the criminalization of consensual sexual relationships between teenagers who are close in age.