Being accused of a sex crime, particularly in those situations in which the alleged victim is a minor, requires prompt attention and action on your part to retain an experienced California criminal defense attorney.
Understanding the options available to you and understanding the need to collect evidence as soon as possible in a California sex crime case can be crucial to the development of a comprehensive defense strategy that could keep you out of jail and protect your rights.
The defenses available to you depend on the type of sex crime with which you have been charged and the circumstances of that alleged act. Some of the most common types of sex crimes accused in the state of California include spousal rape, rape, child pornography, statutory rape, sex act with a child under the age of 10, sexual battery, indecent exposure, lewd acts with a child, prostitution, and lewd conduct in public.
This is not a comprehensive list, however, and many other types of sex crimes are defined by California’s Penal Code. One of the most common defenses to California’s sex crime allegations is innocence. Unfortunately, false accusations of sex crimes can be made for a number of different reasons, some of which result from jealousy or spite.
No matter how you find yourself in this situation, you must be prepared to get help immediately when you find out that you have been accused. The sooner you can bring a lawyer into your case to begin crafting a strategy for your defense, the easier it will be to move forward and to get your best chance of staying out of jail.
Children may have even been encouraged to make a false accusation of sexual abuse and the identification of such a motive is critical for your criminal defense and a sex offense trial. Other defenses such as lack of intent, misperception of the facts and mistaken identity should all be taken into account when putting together a strategy to protect your interests.
