Charges of sexual assault are so severe that they can result in job loss and permanent damage to your reputation. Your family may suffer from the allegations against you, and if convicted, you may lose your freedom and face significant restrictions even after you are released from prison or probation. Calling a West Palm Beach sexual assault lawyer when you are facing these charges may be the most effective step that you can take toward defending yourself.
The cost of a sexual assault conviction is immeasurable. Individuals convicted of this life-altering offense likely never will be able to achieve their personal or professional objectives. By enlisting the services of one of our experienced attorneys at Leifert & Leifert, you may place yourself in a more effective position to avoid or minimize the damage that these charges may cause on your life.
How is Sexual Assault Handled in West Palm Beach?
Although state law provides for various sex-related crimes, sexual battery, also referred to as sexual assault or rape, is one of the most severe criminal charges that individuals can face. The level of the charges may vary according to the circumstances, but they will result in a felony charge that carries a substantial risk of prison time in many cases. Sexual battery charges may occur when any penetration with any object occurs or when sexual organs are joined.
Sexual battery cannot occur unless there is evidence that the alleged victims did not consent to the activities that took place. Many circumstances can indicate a lack of consent, including the age of the alleged victims, mental or physical incapacitation, threats of force or violence, or the relative position of power that some individuals hold over others. For example, inmates in prison or jail cannot consent to sexual assault by law enforcement officials.
The evidence must show that consent to the sexual activities was intelligent, knowing, and voluntary. Anything less than that level of consent is nonconsensual and thus may result in sexual battery charges. A lawyer in West Palm Beach can assist in building a defense strategy based on consent or another essential element of the sexual assault statute.
How Does a Sexual Assault Investigation Begin?
Sexual assault cases typically begin with a complaint. For a complaint to happen, the victim will have to tell police that they have been sexually assaulted. Once law enforcement gains knowledge of what occurred, they will try to find out what happened, how it happened, and where it happened. Once the complainant provides this information, they may have to undergo a rape exam. A rape exam is a thorough examination of a person’s body, aimed to collect forensic evidence such as DNA. This type of evidence could be collected through saliva, semen, urine, and other types of bodily fluids.
Law enforcement would also look for any injuries that may have been sustained by the complainant. To gather this evidence, the complainant would be subject to an internal exam to see if there are any internal injuries. For females, the exam may be done intra-vaginally or intra-anally. For males, the test would be done intra-anally.
Role of a Victim Advocate?
Complainants often find themselves to be in poor condition both emotionally and physically. As a result, they may feel uncomfortable recalling or even thinking about what happened to them. The role of the victim advocate is to encourage the complainant to go through the process of retelling their version of what happened and undergo any tests necessary for gathering forensic evidence. They also serve as a representative on behalf of the victim in terms of response and concerns with the prosecutor, and perhaps even with the court if the victim is not able to communicate. However, the advocate is not allowed to testify on behalf of the alleged victim. Instead, the advocate can testify to the effects of the alleged assault on the complainant.
Which Agencies Handle Sexual Assault Cases in West Palm Beach?
In West Palm Beach, the West Palm Beach Police Department would handle these investigations. If they are in the unincorporated area of West Palm Beach, it would be the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office that would handle this type of case. Each of these departments have a special unit within their departments to handle these types of cases. They are called the Special Victim Unit, or SVU. There is also a Sexual Assault Unit because sexual assault victims are treated much differently. The Sexual Assault Unit may also be tasked with dealing with these types of cases.
Sexual Battery Charges and Penalties
Most sexual assaults are life felonies or first-degree felonies, which carry the potential for the harshest punishments available under state law. For example, individuals may face a life felony for sexual assault when it is against:
- Minors under the age of 12, which causes damages to their sexual organs
- Individuals 12 or older by using physical force that is likely to cause severe injury or threats to use a deadly weapon
- Individuals 12 or older who are physically incapacitated, drugged, passed out, or unconscious
A first-degree felony sexual assault charge may occur when individuals commit a sexual battery against others who are age 12 or older and either helpless to resist or facing threats of force, violence, or retaliation. Administering a narcotic or other intoxicating substance to individuals that incapacitates them and committing sexual battery on them also is a first-degree felony.
A life felony sexual assault conviction can result in a prison sentence of 30 years to life, and a first-degree Felony sexual assault conviction can lead to 30 years or life in prison and a $10,000 fine. For those assaults that constitute second-degree felonies, the prison sentence still is a maximum of 15 years upon conviction. Given the severity of these potential prison sentences, along with mandatory lifetime sex offender registration, individuals facing sexual assault charges may need the assistance of an attorney in West Palm Beach.
Required Sex Offender Registration
One of the most serious consequences of a sexual assault charges is the requirement to register as a sex offender. When someone is required to go through this process they must provide their name, address, picture, place of employment, and other identifying information. All of this information is public knowledge. Individuals must continue to provide this information to local law enforcement every two to four years, depending on the offenses as well as anytime this information change. Typically, individuals who are required to register as a sex offender following a sexual assault charge must stay on this list for life.
However, there may be some situations in which individuals can petition to be removed from this list after they have been on it for 25 years. Failing to register as a sex offender when required to do so is a felony offense that may result in up to ten years in prison. A West Palm Beach attorney could help someone who has been accused of sexual assault avoid this harsh consequence by preparing a strong defense.
How Could a Sexual Assault Offense Impact a Person’s Professional Life?
A person’s professional life could also be significantly impacted by a sexual assault conviction. An assault-related conviction could cause others to view that person as a violent person. In many professions, being convicted of a crime, or even being accused of committing a crime, would have long-term consequences to a professional’s license and livelihood. For example, if any medical professional is accused of simple battery, their license to care for other people would be immediately suspended until the case is resolved and heard in Court. IT must be resolved in their favor if they wish to continue practicing.
Financial professionals are also extremely likely to face job-related consequences caused by a criminal accusation. They could lose their ability to perform financial transactions on behalf of others because they would be considered to not be trustworthy and would not be let into a position of trust. If an employer finds out that a worker has a sexual or assault-related conviction on their record, the employer has to be wary or concerned with the safety of the other workers if the convicted person is allowed to remain on the premises and in their job.
Determining Whether to Testify in Court
During the preparation of the facts and circumstances of the case, the Defendant must determine whether they should testify at trial, what they would say if they testified at trial, and what the potential downfalls, pitfalls, or problems that could arise from their testimony. A West Palm Beach Attorney familiar with handling sexual assault cases could properly prepare someone to testify in court and determine what key points they should touch on during their testimony.
What is Considered Admissible Evidence?
Admissible evidence in a sexual assault trial would be any evidence that would tend to show that the person accused is either guilty or not guilty. This evidence must be relevant evidence to the charge so long as it is properly gathered, properly preserved, and properly testified.
Evidence that would be considered inadmissible includes criminal records. Even if the person had done this type of action before and it was in the same type of manner, that prior act may be used in evidence against the current act or future act.
Character evidence would also be considered inadmissible in a Court of law. For example, information regarding the character of the alleged victim would not be admissible. Consent is always an issue in a sexual assault trial, so Attorneys could explore the avenue of consent. However, they may not bring forward reputation evidence of an alleged victim to show that the alleged victim acted in conformity of that.
What is the Burden of Proof?
The burden of proof in any criminal case is always going to be on the Prosecution. This means that, in order for the Prosecution to obtain a guilty verdict or conviction on any charge, they would have to prove that the Defendant committed the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. If a decision is made to take the case to trial, it is the Attorney’s job to try and cast doubt on the jury deciding the case so they come back with a verdict of “not guilty” in order to argue that the charge has not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
Timeline of a Sexual Assault Case
For sexual assault offenses charged as felonies, the Government has roughly six months to bring someone to trial. However, in most cases, sexual assault cases are known to last a long time since they are prone to being delayed. The timeline would depend upon the amount of issues that take place in the trial, whether or not the accused is in jail awaiting a trial, and what the posture of the case is with regards to the alleged victim. It would be a minimum of six months or it could be up to three years for various issues with witnesses and evidence.
Summoning Potential Jurors in West Palm Beach
The first step in the process is to set up a Jury pool. Random registered voters and licensed drivers in the county would be summoned to the Courthouse to be included in a Jury pool of possible Jurors or participate as Jurors in criminal and civil trials if they are selected for a particular case or matter being Tried.
Once there are enough people in a Jury assembly room, the Judge for the case would order a panel of people from the Jury selection room. For a 12-person Jury, there would be more people bought up as part of that panel as opposed to a Jury selection of only six people. Typically for a panel of six Jurors, anywhere from 25 to 30 people would be needed to be on that Jury pool to be interviewed in the Courtroom by both the Judge and the Attorneys on the case.
Interviewing Jurors for a Sexual Assault Case
The attorneys from both the Prosecution and the Defense would try to determine the fairest most impartial Jurors in the room. Each side gets an opportunity to talk and interview the potential Jurors, ask general questions in relation to the law, and determine their ability to follow that law, particularly if they have any biases or prejudices that would affect their ability to be fair and impartial. The Judge would begin this interview process, followed by the Prosecution and the Defense. Once all the questions have been answered, the West Palm Beach sexual assault attorney would meet with the Judge to go through each juror one by one and determine whether they are accepted or stricken.
Eliminating Potential Jurors
Each side, depending upon the type of trial, has at least three challenges for peremptory reasons, meaning any reason why they do not like them. As long as it is not racially motivated, both sides could remove Jurors if they do not meet their peremptory reasons. Both sides have unlimited challenges for cause, meaning if they believe a person is patently unfair. Maybe that person is a police officer and they are not able to be a fair juror. Maybe that person that they think could be unfair or would be unfair is someone who has been to jail before, has been tried and arrested for the same charge.
For example, a person previously convicted for a similar charge could be deemed biased and unfair due to their criminal history. Other examples could include someone who has some specific knowledge in their field that could be a highly contested technical aspect in the case. This person could be removed if the Judge believes that they also could have some unfair bias towards the case.
Contact a West Palm Beach Sexual Assault Attorney
The life-changing consequences of a sexual assault conviction cannot be understated. Consulting a West Palm Beach sexual assault lawyer at Leifert & Leifert may be the most effective means of mounting a defense to the charges made against you.
Defenses to sexual assault are possible, depending on the facts of your case. Due to the gravity of these charges, you owe it to yourself to explore every option available for defending yourself. To learn more, be sure to schedule a consultation today.
