Sexual battery is a grave crime in California because it results in severe consequences for those found guilty. You commit sexual battery if you engage in a non-consensual and intentional touch of another person’s intimate body parts to sexually gratify yourself, for arousal, or to sexually abuse the victim. The prosecutor can file misdemeanor or felony charges against you, depending on the facts of your case and your criminal history. This law specifically penalizes any touch to ensure that even a slight touch is penalized as long as other elements of the crime are satisfied.
The criminal trial for sexual battery can be very intense, and a conviction is life-altering. However, a skilled criminal attorney can ease your burden by helping you navigate complex legal processes and remaining by your side throughout all court processes. We can also defend against your charges at Pasadena Criminal Attorney. We can help you avoid the severe penalties of a conviction, which include a lengthy prison sentence and a hefty fine.
The Legal Meaning of Sexual Battery
According to Penal Code 243.4 of California law, a sexual battery charge occurs when you touch another person’s private body parts against their will for sexual arousal, gratification, or abuse. The crime is a wobbler, meaning that the district attorney can prosecute it as a felony or misdemeanor based on the details of the case and a defendant’s criminal history. A felony charge can occur under specific conditions, including if you commit the offense against an unconscious, restrained, or medically incapacitated victim. Your penalties can be more severe if you have a prior conviction for sexual battery or a related offense.
Being arrested and facing charges of sexual battery does not necessarily mean that you are guilty of the crime. You must undergo a fair trial, whereby the court hears the case and reviews evidence to give a verdict. The judge will skip the trial if you plead guilty during your initial arraignment or enter a plea deal with the prosecutor. A trial will happen if you plead not guilty or enter a no-contest plea. In these trials, the prosecutor has the burden of proof. They must demonstrate all the elements of this crime beyond a reasonable doubt. If not, the judge will dismiss your charges.
The elements of sexual battery define the offense and include the following:
- You unlawfully touched another person’s private parts
- You did so against the person’s consent
- You intended to arouse or gratify yourself sexually or to sexually abuse the victim
Any intentional touch of a person’s intimate parts, even a slight one, is prohibited if it is against their will and done for sexual arousal, gratification, or abuse. A person’s private body parts are generally the buttocks, genital area, and female breasts. The touch must have occurred against the victim’s consent. Legally, consent must be given before any sexual act. If you coerce or deceive a person, you commit the act against their consent.
You cannot legally engage in a sexual act with someone unable to give consent due to age, unconsciousness, or incapacitation. Additionally, a person can give consent and withdraw it almost immediately. It will be unlawful to continue the sexual act after the person has withdrawn their consent.
The prosecutor must demonstrate your intent, which could be sexual arousal, sexual gratification, or sexual abuse.
Let us discuss some of these elements further to understand the statute even better:
A Non-Consensual Touch
A non-consensual touch occurs without the other person’s will or consent. Even a slight touch can result in grave sex-related charges as long as you do not obtain the person’s consent. When engaging in sexual acts with an adult or someone who can freely consent, you must obtain their consent first. A non-consensual touch can also occur between an adult and a minor or an adult and another adult who cannot give consent because they are mentally ill, intoxicated, deep asleep, or unconscious.
Touching a Person’s Intimate Part
Sexual battery involves touching another person’s intimate body part against their consent. Remember that an intimate part, for this law, can mean a person’s genitals, buttocks, or female breast. The touch does not necessarily imply undressing the persona and touching their private part. Even a slight touch while the person is still dressed up can count as a grave violation.
A Person’s Consent
Sexual battery is a touch that occurs against a person’s will or consent. Consent is legally defined as the ability of a person to agree to a sexual act because they know its nature and understand its consequences. A person agrees to a sexual act by giving their consent willingly and knowingly. If you trick a person into agreeing, or you touch them without seeking their consent, you do so against their will.
A human being must voluntarily give in to a sexual act, not through coercion, force, manipulation, or intimidation. Anything you do beyond that is unlawful if someone declines your touch. If a person cannot consent, you cannot assume they agree to the touch. If a person agrees to the touch because of your threats or intimidation, it will escalate your sexual battery charge.
Sexual Gratification, Arousal, or Abuse
These constitute the intents the prosecutor must prove to demonstrate that you are guilty of sexual battery. Sexual gratification and arousal are usually done for the perpetrator’s benefit. However, anyone who commits sexual battery for sexual abuse victimizes the victim twice.
Sexual abuse refers to any sexual conduct that occurs without a person’s consent. It is a general crime that can constitute various sexual acts, all of which are committed without a person’s consent. You can commit sexual abuse by touching, groping, or fonding another person without their consent. Not all sexual abuse involves demeaning the victim. Some cases involve coercion or exploitation.
Sexual abuse does not always involve coercion or physical harm. It mainly entails violating a person’s bodily and personal space rights. The psychological impact of sexual abuse is severe, hence the severe consequences for anyone found guilty under the law.
The Unlawful Restraint of a Victim
Some sexual battery crimes occur after an unlawful restraint of the victim. Unlawful restraint is any detention or confinement of a person against their will. You can do so through intimidation, aggression, or in a way that prevents the victim from escaping from an unlawful sexual act.
When you restrain a person for sexual battery, you keep them under your control so you can unlawfully touch their private body parts against their will.
Sexual Battery With The Help of an Accomplice
Some people commit sexual battery with the help of or together with others. If a person knowingly contributes, encourages, or takes part in such a crime, they are as guilty as the primary perpetrator of sexual battery. You are an accomplice if you help in planning or attacking a victim of sexual battery. Thus, if you hold a victim down or lure them to a crime scene, you will face charges as an accomplice to a grave crime.
In California, accomplices of such grave crimes are prosecuted the same way as actual perpetrators. You will face the exact charges as the person you were helping, even if you did not commit the sexual battery on the victim. Your involvement in the crime, however slight, will result in severe penalties. What matters is that you knew about the crime and did something to aid or cover it up.
Penal Code 243.4 Subsections
Sexual battery under PC 243.4 is a general crime. The law has various subsections, which the prosecutor considers when filing charges according to your case details. These subsections are as follows:
Sexual Battery of a Restrained Person, PC 243.4(a)
This is the subsection the prosecutor will file your charges against if you commit sexual battery on a person after unlawfully restraining them. The restraint can be physical or psychological but must be against their will. Unlawful restraint means that the victim is unable to move away from you to protect themselves from sexual battery. You can restrain a person through threats of violence, force, or physical restraint. The restraint does not necessarily have to result in a physical injury. A victim is under unlawful restraint even if they can move freely but cannot get away from you.
Sexual battery against a restrained person is prosecuted as a felony. Restraining or holding someone against their will aggravates the crime, resulting in more severe charges and penalties.
Sexual Battery of an Institutionalized or Disabled Person, PC 243.4(b)
This is the subsection of the sexual battery law that prohibits sexual battery against someone who is institutionalized because of a mental or physical condition or one who has a physical disability. Due to their conditions, these people cannot consent to any sexual act. Taking advantage of such a person’s condition or illness for sexual gratification, arousal, or to sexually abuse them can result in grave charges. An institutionalized person is anyone confined in a nursing home, mental institution, or hospital. Conditions that cause a person to become institutionalized could make it difficult for them to fight back or understand the nature of a sexual act enough to consent.
PC 243.4(b) is also a felony offense due to the grave nature of this crime. You will likely receive harsh penalties upon conviction.
Sexual Battery Under a False Pretense, PC 243.4(c)
Prosecutors use this law against anyone who uses persuasion, deception, or fraud to commit sexual battery against another. Remember that a person must understand the nature and consequences of a sexual act to consent. If you trick them into consenting to an act they do not understand, you can face grave charges and severe penalties. For example, a healthcare professional who lies to a patient and touches their private parts for medical purposes can face sexual battery charges under this section if they deceive the victim for sexual abuse or sexual gratification or arousal.
Sexual Battery Through Force, PC 243.4(d)
The use of force to compel a person to engage in a sexual act is also a grave offense. Using force to commit sexual battery against a person’s will can result in a harsh sentence. You can do this in various ways, including using threats, physical force, or pressure. This is also a felony offense.
Sexual Battery, PC 243.4 (e) (1)
This is a general form of sexual battery, which is mainly a misdemeanor offense in California. The offense occurs when you unlawfully touch another person’s private parts against their consent for sexual abuse, arousal, or gratification. A misdemeanor sexual battery case does not have any aggravating factor like confinement or kidnapping. It does not also involve someone who cannot consent to a sexual act.
Although treated as a misdemeanor, it is still a severe offense, punishable by stiff penalties upon conviction. You will likely receive a lengthy jail sentence, a hefty court fine, and a requirement to register as a sex offender in the sex offender registry.
Penalties for a Sexual Battery Conviction
Remember that you can face misdemeanor or felony charges for sexual battery. Prosecutors determine the proper charge to file against a defendant based on the defendant's case details and criminal history. You will likely face a misdemeanor charge if there are no aggravating factors in your case, like an injury, confinement, or kidnapping.
A misdemeanor conviction for sexual battery is punishable by the following:
- A maximum of six months in jail
- A court fine of up to $2000, which could go up to $300 if the victim is your employee
- Misdemeanor probation for up to three years
- A requirement to register for ten years in the sex offenders registry
A misdemeanor probation will come with strict probation conditions that you must abide by throughout your sentence. For example, the judge can order you to do community service for a predetermined time, not to engage in any unlawful activities during probation, and to submit period progress reports to the court. You could also be ordered to undergo counseling, rehabilitation, or treatment for an underlying issue like a drug or anger issue.
A felony conviction is much more severe, as it can result in the following penalties:
- Two, three, or four years in a state prison
- Felony probation
- A court fine of $10,000
- A requirement to register for life in the sex offender registry
If the judge grants you probation, they could require you to serve part of your sentence in jail and the remaining part out of jail. A felony probation can last for up to five years. The judge will set probation conditions to ensure you remain crime-free and serve your sentence during probation. They will prohibit you from engaging in any criminal acts. They will also order you to perform community service for a particular number of hours, to meet regularly with your probation officer, and to undergo treatment, counseling, and rehabilitation for an underlying problem.
Defending Yourself from Sexual Battery Accusations
A sexual battery conviction comes with severe, life-changing consequences. On top of a hefty court fine and a lengthy prison sentence, it leaves you with a severe criminal record that will affect all aspects of your life. You will likely lose the support of your family and friends, especially after learning the nature of your charges. You will also likely lose your job, and after spending a long time in prison, it could be challenging to carry on with your career. Finding a suitable job can be difficult after a sexual battery conviction. This is because employers conduct background checks on potential employees and can deny you an opportunity based on their findings.
Fortunately, you do not have to wait for a problematic ending because you can fight your charges during the trial. You can do this with the assistance of a competent criminal attorney. In addition to helping you navigate the challenging court process, your attorney can mount up a solid defense against your charges for a fair outcome. They can also fight for your rights and ensure you have a compelling statement and evidence to trigger a favorable result. Here are some of the strategies that can help you achieve the best possible results:
You Had the Alleged Victim’s Consent
Remember, the legal definition of sexual battery includes an unlawful touch done against a person’s will or consent. The details of your case do not satisfy the legal definition of this crime if you had the alleged victim’s consent.
Consent is a challenging matter to prove to a prosecutor. Remember that sex crimes do not occur out in the open, where there are eyewitnesses. You must be aggressive enough in your defense to show the court that you had the victim’s consent, especially if the victim denies giving you consent.
For example, your attorney can argue that the victim agreed to meet up with you for the sexual act. They can provide texts or any other correspondence between you and the alleged victim to back the claim. If they do this successfully, the judge will dismiss your charges.
You Did Not Engage in Sexual Touching
Fighting the claim that you unlawfully touched the sexual organs of another person for sexual abuse, arousal, or gratification can help your case. First, the prosecutor must demonstrate this fact beyond a reasonable doubt. Your skilled attorney can refute the claims that although you touched the alleged victim’s private parts, it was not for sexual purposes or abuse. The touch could have been unintentional or accidental. If you can show that it was not at all motivated by sex, the judge can dismiss your charges.
You Are Falsely Accused
Cases of false accusations are rampant, especially sex-related cases. An angry or vengeful person can accuse another of an unlawful sexual touch that did not occur in the first place. Your accuser could be your ex-partner or someone you turned down once. Anger, a desire for revenge, or jealousy mainly fuels false accusations. You need an aggressive criminal attorney to prove to the court that the allegations are untrue.
Your attorney can bring in eyewitnesses to prove the motive behind the false accusation. They can also use your alibi to show the court that you could not have committed the offense at the time the victim alleges. If this works, the judge will drop your charges.
You Are Mistakenly Identified
Another reason people face charges for crimes they have not committed is mistaken identities. Someone can mistake you for the actual perpetrator based on your physical appearance, the vehicle you drive, where you live or work, or the kinds of friends you keep.
Since sexual battery is such a grave offense, it can affect a victim’s emotions and the ability to recall details of the crime accurately. This can result in a mistaken identity, especially if you dress the same as the perpetrator or have similar physical features.
Your attorney must provide solid evidence to refute these claims and protect you from penalties for a crime you did not commit. They can use your alibi or forensic evidence to exonerate you. If this works, the judge will drop your charges.
Find a Competent Pasadena Criminal Attorney Near Me
If you face sexual battery charges in Pasadena, you could be terrified of the legal process and possible outcome. The criminal process for anyone facing sex-related charges can be very complex. The potential consequences are also traumatizing, especially if you consider the likelihood of a felony conviction. You need the assistance of an attorney to navigate all processes successfully and in the hope of a favorable outcome.
We handle all kinds of sex-related cases at Pasadena Criminal Attorney. We know how difficult it can be for a defendant, especially if you are falsely accused or had consent. We can help you mount a strong defense against your charges for a favorable result. We will also ensure you know your rights, options, and the best strategies that could result in a fair outcome. Call us at 626-689-2277 for more information about your charges and our service.
