This, of course, depends on
jurisdiction. In
Spain, for example, the
age of consent is 12. In the Netherlands, it's
16, but between 12 and 16 only the person involved or
eir legal representatives (
parents,
legal guardian, or presumably someone with
power of attorney---I don't know
Dutch law) can report you to the
authorities. In
Kentucky, it's
16, or
14 if you're
under 21. In many jurisdictions, though (for example,
Arizona), the age of consent is 18. In
Trinidad and Tobago, it's
21. In too large a number of jurisdictions, it depends on the sex of the potentially-
underage person (usually being
lower for females: everyone knows those
awful 20-year-old jezebels are trying to seduce our boys; but we have to let the girls get
pregnant early, or they might---*gasp*---
get a job and challenge the
patriarchical status quo).
For more information, see the informative and (perhaps) useful http://www.ageofconsent.com.
Also, the punishment for statutory rape of someone close to the age of consent is usually not so steep as twenty years. Now, for 5-year-olds, perhaps.