When your loved one faces sexual crime, especially statutory rape, you must have the best legal representation. Statutory rape charges have a long-lasting impact on your life or that of your loved one, and they will also affect you socially. You may face these charges unintentionally since it's against the law to have sex with a child or someone aged below 18 years. 

In California, the law treats a minor as someone incapable of legally agreeing to have sexual intercourse. You may face statutory rape charges even where your partner agreed. When dealing with statutory rape charges, the minor's age plays a critical role. You may face several years in prison and pay hefty fines due to someone’s anger, jealousy, misunderstanding, or even for revenge. 

If you face statutory rape charges in Anaheim, you should seek the help of a criminal defense lawyer who will advise you accordingly. At California Criminal Lawyer Group, our attorneys are experienced in sexual crimes and understand the DA's procedure to collect their evidence against you. With our experience in dealing with sex crimes, especially statutory rape, we will walk with you, explain the court procedures, and ensure you obtain the best possible outcome.

Legal Definition Of Statutory Rape

The law under PC 261.5 defines statutory rape as the act of an adult having sexual intercourse with a child, even if they have given their consent. An adult is a person aged 18 years and above, while a child is a person aged below 18. Under PC 261.5, the law assumes that a minor is legally incapable of agreeing to sexual intercourse. The term statutory rape comes from the fact that a minor cannot consent to sexual activity as written in the law.

Classifications Of Statutory Rapes In California

There are several types of statutory rapes in California, and they depend on the age of the perpetrator and the victim. These classifications include:

  • Sexual penetration between a minor aged 17 and below with a perpetrator of any age. In this case, the penetration level doesn't matter, whether slight or not.
  • Sexual intercourse between a person aged 14 or below and a person older than the minor by at least ten years.
  • Lascivious or lewd acts with a child aged 13 years or below with a person of any age. Also, lewd acts against a minor aged between 14 and 15 years while the defendant is older than the minor by at least ten years.

Elements Of Statutory Rape

For a conviction under PC 261.5(a) &(c)

The prosecution will have to prove the following facts for a statutory rape charge of a younger child than you by three or more years:

  • You had sex with the victim, and it doesn't matter whether the penetration was slight or not.
  • You are not married to the victim.
  • That the victim was aged below 18 when the offense occurred
  • The victim was three or more years younger than you at the sexual act.

For example, Vincent is 19 years old and loves Ronny, a 16-year-old girl. He proposes to her, and she agrees to marry him later. As their relationship proceeds, they start having sex while planning their wedding. When Ronny’s parents learn about the engagement and are already having sex, they file a report against Vincent with the police. The police arrest Vincent, and the prosecution charges him with statutory rape charges. Vincent insists that he is innocent as Ronny was his fiancee, and they were already planning their wedding. Since Vincent had sexual intercourse with Ronny, a 16-year-old minor, three years younger than him, the charge will hold in court. Vincent's defense will not hold as Ronny is a minor, who is not married to him, and since the age of legal consent is 18 in California, her consent doesn't matter.

For A Conviction Of A Child who is younger Than 16 years While You Are Aged 21 Or Older, CPC 261.5 (a)&(d)

For this charge to hold in a court, the prosecution has to show the following facts beyond reasonable doubts:

  • You had sex with the victim,
  • you were not married to the victim when you committed the offense.
  • the victim was 16 years or younger when the offense took place.
  • you were 21 years or older when you committed the crime.

For example, Mark, a 22-year-old college student, meets with Cindy, A 15-year-old minor, at their college event held on their campus. Cindy is a high school student attending an event held at Mark’s college, and they hit it off immediately. Marks asks Cindy out on a date and takes her to the movies. When he asks her back to his place, she declines and goes home. Cindy's parents learned about the date and filed a complaint with the local police. Though Mark is 22 and therefore an adult, Cindy is a minor, and they were unmarried when they went out. He can also say that he assumed Cindy was an adult since they met at his college, and he assumed she was a student at the college as well. Mark can not be convicted of statutory rape charges since they did not have any sexual intercourse during their date.

You should note that the prosecution doesn’t have to show that you used force while accomplishing the act, whether the minor consented. When dealing with statutory rape, you can face criminal charges from a loving relationship; all that matters is your age. 

For example, a 21-year-old attending community college, Denis, meets with June in their music class. June is taking music classes at the community college while still in high school. Denis and June begin practicing together and fall in love with time. After some time, they become sexually active, and when June's parents find out, they file a statutory rape charge against Denis. Denis could face statutory rape charges for having a sexual relationship with June though it was consensual.

The prosecution has to prove the age of both parties in a statutory rape case. The law deems you a year older a minute after midnight on your birthday for the law. For example, Brianna, an 18- year old, has sex with Kane, her boyfriend, who is 17 at the time but turns 18 the following morning. Kane tells his friends about his previous activities, and their nosy neighbor overhears the next day. He tells Kane's parents, who file a statutory rape charge against Brianna. Brianna says that Kane was turning 18 the following day, but she could face statutory rape charges under the law as Kane was still a minor.  

Can A Minor Face Statutory Rape Charges?

Yes, you could face statutory rape charges while still a minor under penal code 261.5 at the sexual intercourse. This may fail to make sense since you are also a victim of the offense as a minor, but that's the law for you! The best part is that most prosecutors try to avoid charging teenagers who are sexually active with their agemates, though they can still charge. If both parties are minors, the prosecution can charge them through the juvenile justice system.

Statutory Rape Penalties

The law under PC 261.5 treats statutory rape as a wobbler offense, meaning that the prosecution can charge it as a misdemeanor or felony offense. The prosecution will charge you with either a felony or misdemeanor offense if:

  • The age difference between you and your victim is three years, and the prosecution will file a misdemeanor charge against you.
  •  The age difference between you and your victim is three years or more, and the prosecution can file a wobbler charge against you.
  • When the victim is aged 16 years, and below while above 21, the prosecution can file either a felony or misdemeanor charge against you.

The circumstances surrounding your case and your criminal record will play a key role in determining if the prosecutor will file a felony or misdemeanor charge against you.

Misdemeanor penalties

A misdemeanor conviction will lead to the following sentencing:

  • Misdemeanor probation.
  • One year imprisonment in county jail.
  • Payment of $1,000 in fines.

Penalties For Statutory Rape For A Minor Aged Three Years Within Your Age PC 261.1(a)&(b) 

A conviction for a statutory rape charge where the minor’s age is three years within your age leads to the sentencing of: 

  • six months imprisonment in county jail,
  • payment of fines not exceeding $1,000
  • or both imprisonment and fines.

Penalties for A Statutory Rape Charge When You Are Three Years Or Older Than The Minor PC 261.5(a)&(c)

A conviction for this charge will lead to a harsher sentence which includes:

  • Three years imprisonment in state prison.
  • Payment of fines that don't exceed &10,000. 
  • Both imprisonment and fine.

 Penalties for A Statutory Rape Charge When You Are Aged 21 Or Older While The Minor Is 16 or Younger PC 261.5(a)&(d)

Under penal COde 261.5 (a)&(d), it is a crime to engage in sexual intercourse with a minor, especially one who is aged 16 years and below, while you have aged 21 and above. a conviction for this crime will result in:

  • Four years imprisonment in state prison.
  • Payment of fines that does not exceed $10,000.
  • Both fine and imprisonment. 

Civil Penalties

You can also end up facing civil penalties in a statutory rape case. A civil penalty is a non-criminal penalty the court imposes on top of the criminal penalties. When it comes to civil penalties, they only apply to adults. When imposing civil penalties, the court will consider the age difference between you and the alleged victim. For instance, you will pay $2,000 on top of the fines imposed by the court when you are two years older than the victim. $5,000 when your victim is aged three years or younger than you, and $25,000 when the victim is aged below 16 years, while you were over 21 years at the offense.

Exceptions To Statutory Rape Charges

California has some exceptions to statutory rape charges. They include:

Marital Exception

This exception allows minors to have consensual sexual intercourse under the condition that they are legally married. In this scenario, you can not face statutory rape charges with a minor if you are legally married. For Example, June is 16 years old and married to Dylan, her 19-year-old boyfriend. When they move into a new neighborhood, their landlord reports Dylan for statutory rape, but the court acquits Dylan of the charges since the two are already married. However, if Dylan forcibly rapes June, this exception will not apply as the wife could file charges against them for marital rape.

Close in Age Exceptions

The law also refers to close-in-age exceptions as Romeo & Juliet exceptions, which carry a lesser penalty. This exception aims to prevent teenagers who are sexually active from facing severe criminal charges when they engage in consensual sexual intercourse. Romeo & Juliet exception mainly applies to sex between minors with three or fewer years age gap. You should note that this exception does not protect you from facing criminal charges; it only helps reduce your charge. Your defense team could use their exception to ensure you face a misdemeanor charge rather than a felony one. With a misdemeanor charge, you will receive lesser sentencing.

Defenses Against Statutory Rape Charges In California

Statutory rape charges are a serious offense in California that carries harsh sentencing. This sentencing could negatively affect your life, and you should develop a defense strategy that will have your sentence reduced to that of a misdemeanor from a felony. Some of the defenses which your defense team can apply include and are not limited to:

You Believed That The Victim Was An Adult

You can use this defense if you reasonably and honestly believe the person you had sex with was an adult at the time of the act. This defense may apply when the minor in question lied about their age. You can use this defense if the alleged victim was in an adult venue like a bar or college or dressed in attire that made them appear like an adult.

For example, 17-year-old Jenna uses a very realistic-looking fake driving license to go to a pub. She meets 22-year-old Yola. Jenna uses her fake license to buy Yola and her friends' several drinks. She tells Yola that she is 21 years old and lives with several roommates while attending college. Yola invites her to her apartment, where they have sexual intercourse before Jenna leaves. The following day Yola is surprised to find police who arrested her for statutory rape under PC 261.5. Yola learns that Jenna is a minor who used a fake driving license at the pub; she argues that she thought Jenna was an adult since she had a document supporting her age. In this case, Yola had sex with Jenna, a minor, who was not her spouse. Jenna wasn't 18 at the time they had sex. Jenna, however, falsely represented herself as an adult by producing a realistic-looking fake driving license and proceeded to buy alcoholic drinks for Yola and her friends. She then told Yola that she was a college student sharing an apartment with other students so she couldn't take her there. Jenna, therefore, represented herself as an adult severally, which made Yola honestly believe that she was an adult at the time and, consequently, she should not be charged with statutory rape.

False accusations.

You can use this defense if the accusations are false. Sometimes you may face statutory rape charges as a result of false accusations. In most cases, false accusation happens due to anger, revenge, or jealousy. In other instances, a minor’s parent may make such allegations hoping to separate another person from dating their child. Hiring an experienced criminal attorney will help you prove your innocence and have the court dismiss your charges.

Sexual Intercourse Did Not Take Place

You can use this defense in circumstances where sexual intercourse did not occur. For instance, if you are attracted to a girl in your racing team though she is a minor. However, on approaching her, she rejects you, and out of embarrassment, you tell your friends that you had sex with her. If this story reaches her parents, who then file statutory rape charges against you, you should come clean and admit that you lied about having sex with the girl. 

Related Offenses

There are some crimes that the prosecution frequently charges with statutory rape as they share some elements. They include and are not limited to:

Lascivious Acts With A Minor CPC288 (a)

Under PC 288(a), you will face lewd or lascivious acts with a minor charge when you touch a minor aged below 15 years intending to gratify you or the minor sexually. When it comes to lascivious acts with a minor, the touch doesn't matter whether it is done on their clothing or body. A conviction could lead to eight years in state prison, payment of $10,000 in fines, or both. The law also requires you to register a sexual offender under CPC 288, and the law treats failure to do so as a felony offense.

Oral Copulation Against A Child CPC 288(a)(a&b)

For this offense to take place, you will have to touch the mouth of a minor with your anus or sexual organ. Oral copulation against a minor is a wobbler offense. The prosecution charges as either a felony or misdemeanor depending on the facts surrounding the case. a conviction will lead to one year of state imprisonment, payment of $1,000 in fines, or both. The law also requires you to register as a sexual offender for ten years.

Rape CPC 261(a)

California Penal Code 261(a) defines rape as having sex with someone against their will. You can overcome your victim’s consent by applying force, coercion, or threats. The law also defines sexual intercourse with someone unconscious or intoxicated as rape. For this charge to be held in court, the prosecution has to prove beyond reasonable doubt that you had sexual intercourse with a person who is not your spouse, your victim did not consent to have sexual intercourse with you, and that you used force, or threat to accomplish the act.

 Rape is a felony offense, and a conviction will lead to the following sentencing:

  • Imprisonment term in state prison for eight years,
  • Payment of $10,000 in fines,
  • Registration as a sexual offender for ten years
  • Earn a strike under California Three strikes law

Sexual Battery California PC 243.4(a)

Under PC 243.4(a), you will face these charges when touching another person’s intimate parts while restraining that person unlawfully. You will have to touch the alleged victim against their will for sexual gratification, arousal, or abuse to face this charge. You can do so or have someone else control them to restrain them. When facing these charges, the prosecution will have to prove beyond reasonable doubt the following facts:

  • You touched the victim’s intimate parts and made them touch themselves or touch someone else, intending to gratify sexually, abuse, or arouse them. 
  • You touched another person’s intimate parts against their will.

 Sexual battery is a wobbler offense with prosecution filing either a felony or misdemeanor charges against you, depending on the offense's circumstances and your criminal history. A felony conviction  will lead to the following sentencing:

  • four years imprisonment in state prison
  • payment of $10,000 in fines
  • Both imprisonment and  payment of fines
  • The requirement to register as a sexual offender for the next ten years.

Contact A Criminal Defense Lawyer Near Me

Facing a sexual crime in Anaheim, Ca, can be a traumatizing experience that could lead to lengthy imprisonment. You will need to hire a criminal lawyer to defend you when facing these charges. Whether you are facing these charges due to a false accusation or having mistaken your partner's age, you need to ensure you are legally represented. At California Criminal Lawyer Group, our team of experienced attorneys will take your case and ensure you are well represented. We understand the California judicial system, and we will use our experience to ensure you obtain the best possible outcome in your case. You can contact us at 714-766-0965 and schedule your appointment.