Being arrested or under investigation as an offender or suspect in a child molestation case can undoubtedly be an intimidating and scary situation. While child molestation generally refers to a variety of offenses, the potential consequences of any of these offenses' convictions can be detrimental to your life. In addition to the possible lengthy jail sentence and unaffordable fines, a guilty verdict for a child molestation offense could tarnish your professional reputation. Consulting with a defense attorney if you are under investigation as an offender in a child molestation case is a brilliant idea.
The attorney you hire will investigate your unique case thoroughly to build solid defenses that can assist you in convincing the court to drop or reduce your charges.
An Overview of Crimes that Could Qualify as Child Molestation
Generally speaking, child molestation is an umbrella name for several sexual-related crimes against children. Child molestation statutes make it illegal to engage in or attempt to engage in any sexual act with a minor (any person aged below eighteen years). Depending on the nature and facts of your unique case, child molestation allegations could attract misdemeanor or felony charges.
Unfortunately, if you have a child molestation-related offense, you cannot challenge the criminal charge by arguing the minor consented to the act. In the eyes of the law, minors are incapable of consent, meaning they are not mentally capable of understanding the implications of their choices and decisions.
You will need the services of an aggressive attorney to build defenses that can help you challenge the alleged charge for the best possible judgment. Here is a brief overview of various sex-related crimes that could qualify as child molestation:
Oral Copulation With a Minor
Penal Code (PC) 287 is the statute that makes it unlawful to engage in oral copulation with a minor. According to PC 287, oral copulation is any contact, regardless of how slight, between the mouth of one individual and the anus, penis, or vagina of another individual.
To secure a guilty verdict under PC 287, the prosecution team will bear the burden of proving the following facts to the court:
- You engaged in an act of oral copulation with someone else
- The person was under the age of eighteen years
The prosecutor does not have to prove that you penetrated or ejaculated on the person to secure a PC 287 violation conviction against you. A PC 287 violation conviction could attract a jail sentence of up to three years or formal probation when the prosecutor files your offense as a felony since it is a wobbler.
However, if your offense is a misdemeanor, your penalties include up to one year of jail sentence or informal probation.
Lascivious Acts With a Child
Also commonly referred to as child molestation, engaging in lascivious or lewd acts or conduct with a child is an offense under Penal Code 288. According to this law, it is unlawful to willfully touch any part of a child's body, either through the clothes or on the bare skin, or cause him/her to touch your body for sexual arousal or gratification.
The sentence you will face upon conviction will depend on the specifics of your case. If the minor involved is under fourteen (14) years old, your sentence upon receiving a guilty verdict for a PC 288 violation will include up to eight (8) years of jail sentence and a fine not exceeding $10,000.
However, if your offense involves using threat, force, or fear to coerce the minor to engage in lascivious acts with you, your sentence after conviction could include up to ten (10) years of jail sentence and a fine amounting to up to $10,000.
Sending Obscene Material to Seduce a Minor
According to Penal Code 288.2, it is unlawful to exhibit, distribute, send, or display obscene materials to a minor with the intent to engage in either of the following with him/her:
- Oral copulation
- Sodomy
- Sexual contact
- Sexual intercourse
Depending on the nature and circumstances of your unique case, the prosecutor could file your PC 288.2 charge as either a misdemeanor or felony since it qualifies as a wobbler offense. A misdemeanor PC 288.2 violation conviction is punishable by:
- Up to one (1) year of jail time
- A fine amounting to up to $1,000
However, if your PC 288.2 charge is a felony, a conviction will attract a jail term of up to three (3) years and a fine not exceeding $10,000.
Contacting a Minor With the Intent to Commit Felony
PC 288.3 makes it a crime to contact a minor with the criminal intent to engage in a sex offense or other serious felony involving a child. Below are examples of underlying felony offenses the prosecution team can use to support his/her PC 288.3 case against you:
- Kidnapping
- Rape
- Sodomy
- Child endangerment
To secure a PC 288.3 violation, the prosecution team must provide adequate evidence to show the court that you were aware or should have reasonably known the person was under eighteen. When the prosecutor secures a guilty verdict against you, your penalties will include:
In most cases, the prosecutor will file this charge as a felony, carrying the following potential legal penalties:
- Up to $10,000 maximum fine
- An imprisonment term of up to thirteen (13) years
- Felony probation
Annoying or Molesting a Child
PC 647.6 makes it a criminal offense to molest or annoy a child aged under eighteen years. Specifically, this statute makes it illegal to engage in any conduct that irritates, disturbs, or annoys a minor for sexual reasons.
Remember that the prosecutor could secure a PC 647.6 violation conviction against you even if your conduct did not annoy or irritate the alleged child. What matters for a conviction under this statute is whether your conduct would irritate a standard sober person and intrude on the child's security and privacy.
Unlike most sex offenses, the prosecutor can secure a conviction against you under PC 647.6, even if there was no physical contact between you and the child's body. A PC 647.6 violation is chargeable as a wobbler, which could result in felony or felony penalties upon conviction.
The prosecutor is more likely to file your PC 647.6 offense, a felony, when you illegally enter an inhabited part of any building, a trailer couch, or an inhabited dwelling to annoy, harass, or molest a minor. A felony PC 647.6 violation conviction will attract the following potential punishment:
- Up to three years of jail time
- A fine amounting to up to $10,000
- Felony or formal probation
However, when your PC 647.6 charge is a misdemeanor, you should anticipate the following legal penalties after conviction:
- Detention in the county jail for up to one (1) year
- A fine amounting to up to $5,000
- Misdemeanor or informal probation
Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child
If the sexual abuse against the minor is ongoing, the prosecution team could file continuous sexual abuse of minor charges against you under PC 288.5. According to this statute, you commit continuous sexual abuse of a child offense if you:
- Engage in three (3) or more instances of sexual abuse against a minor within a three-month duration, and you
- Live on the same premises with him/her or have recurring access to him/her
The prosecution team will file this charge as a felony, and your sentence upon conviction could include an imprisonment term of up to sixteen (16) years.
Statutory Rape
Statutory rape is the offense you commit when you engage or participate in sexual intercourse with a minor whom you are not legally married to. According to penal code 261.5, the prosecution team can secure a guilty verdict against you for a statutory rape charge even if the minor consented to the sexual intercourse or he/she initiated the act because they are incapable of consent.
Generally speaking, the prosecution team could file this offense as either a misdemeanor or felony based on the facts listed below:
- As long as you are not three (3) years older than the victim, the prosecution team will file your statutory rape charge as a misdemeanor
- If you are three (3) years older than the victim, the prosecutor will file your statutory rape as either a felony or misdemeanor
- If you are twenty-one (21) years of age or older, and the victim is below sixteen (16) years at the time of the offense, the prosecutor will file your PC 261.5 offense as either a felony or misdemeanor
When charged with a misdemeanor statutory rape offense, your penalties upon receiving a guilty verdict under this statute will include:
- A fine not exceeding $1,000
- Up to one (1) year of custody in the county jail
- Informal probation
However, when the prosecution files felony PC 261.5 charges against you, a conviction could carry the following legal penalties:
- A jail sentence of not more than (3) years unless you are twenty-one (21) years of age or older and the victim was sixteen at the time of the offense. In this situation, a PC 261.5 violation conviction will carry a jail sentence of not more than four years
- Up to $10,000 maximum fine
- Formal probation
Possession of Child Pornography
PC 311.11 makes it illegal to commit child pornography in your possession. According to this statute, a child is anyone aged below eighteen years, and "child pornography" could be any material that shows sexual conduct or acts with a minor. Depending on the facts and circumstances of your unique case, a PC 311.11 charge conviction could carry either felony or misdemeanor penalties.
If the prosecution team files your offense as a felony, a PC 311.11 violation conviction is punishable by:
- Detention in the county jail for not more than one (1) year
- Up to a maximum of $2,500 fine
However, if your charge is a felony, the penalties you can expect when the court convicts you include a maximum $2,500 fine and a jail sentence of not more than three years.
In addition to these legal penalties, a guilty verdict for any sexual-related offense will likely lead to the following collateral consequences:
- A legal obligation to register and re-register as a convicted sex offender
- Deportation when you are a non-citizen, regardless of your stay here
- A criminal record
Sexual Acts With a Child Under 10
According to PC 288.7, it is a criminal offense to engage in sexual intercourse, sodomy, oral copulation, or penetration with a minor under the age of ten (10) years. Below are a few examples of behaviors or acts that could attract PC 288.7 charges:
- A man aged 25 years having sexual intercourse with a nine-year-old girl
- A 36-year-old teacher sodomizing a 7-year-old boy
- A 19-year-old boy penetrating an 8-year-old girl on her vagina with his penis
- A 40-year-old woman forcing a 9-year-old boy to lick her vagina
For the sake of PC 288.7, oral copulation means any contact between the adult's genitals or anus with the child's mouth. It is worth noting that the court could convict you under this law even if you are biologically related to the child.
Since it is a felony, you should anticipate harsh and life-changing penalties upon conviction, including up to twenty-five (25) years of detention in the state prison.
Remember, like any other sexual offense, a guilty verdict for any sexually related offense where a child is a victim could attract other detrimental consequences that could affect your quality of life even after your case is over. Examples of these consequences include:
- Deportation for non-citizens
- Inclusion in the national sex offender registry
Defenses to Child Molestation-Related Charges
Any child molestation-related offense is serious and could attract life-altering consequences upon conviction. However, with the legal assistance of a skilled attorney, you could convince the judge or jury to reduce or dismiss your entire case.
Here are examples of viable legal defenses your criminal defense attorney could apply to aid you in securing a favorable outcome at trial if you have child molestation-related charges:
- You are a victim of entrapment
- The police coerced you to commit the offense
- You thought the alleged victim was over eighteen years old (mistake of fact)
- You were lawfully insane at the time of the offense
- The prosecutor's evidence against you is unclear or insufficient
- The alleged victim is not a minor
- You did contact the victim, but the contact was not sexual
Will I Qualify for Expungement After a Conviction for a Child Molestation-Related Offense?
A conviction for any child molestation-related offense will remain on your criminal record unless you secure an expungement. With a criminal record for a child molestation-related case, it can be extremely challenging to do the following:
- Secure an apartment or house to live in because most landlords will not allow people with criminal records to live on their property
- Qualify for reliable employment because most employers nowadays conduct a background check on job applicants before recruiting them
- Secure a professional license to offer your services, especially if your career involves working with children or vulnerable groups of people
- Secure admission to university or college
- Join a professional organization
However, you do not have to live your entire life with a criminal record after serving your sentence for any child molestation-related offense. With the legal help of your attorney, you could qualify for expungement under Penal Code 1203.4. An expungement will eliminate all the disabilities and consequences caused by a conviction because it gives you a clean criminal record.
After an expungement, you can confidently say you do not have a conviction record when asked about your criminal history. If your offense is a misdemeanor and you have completed your probation and jail term, you could be eligible for an expungement.
Conversely, if you served your sentence in the state prison due to a felony conviction for a child molestation-related offense, you will not qualify for expungement unless under certain circumstances. For example, if you served your time in the state prison but would qualify to serve your sentence in a county jail under 2011's Proposition (Prop) 47, you could be eligible for expungement.
While you can file your expungement petition alone, your odds of qualifying for this post-conviction relief will be higher when you have a skilled attorney as your legal voice. If you are not an excellent candidate for expungement, your attorney can explore other post-conviction relief options to help you avoid the detrimental consequences associated with a conviction. Examples of these post-conviction relief options include:
- Obtaining a Governor's pardon
- Obtaining a Certificate of Rehabilitation (COR)
Find a Reliable Criminal Defense Attorney Near Me
Child molestation-related charges could have life-altering implications in your life, even after serving your sentence. Aside from jail time, a conviction for any of these offenses could affect your professional life and reputation in the community.
If you are looking for a reliable attorney to help you challenge child molestation allegations in Van Nuys, our attorneys at Leah Legal can provide the necessary legal assistance. Call us at 818-484-1100 to discuss the details of your unique case with our understanding and reputable defense attorneys.