How to Fight A False Sexual Assault Allegation

There are many different types of sexual assault offenses for which a person can be charged with.  The list includes possession of child pornography, indecent exposure, internet crimes, lewd conduct, online solicitation of a minor, aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and solicitation of prostitution.

For as many types of offenses as there are there are just as many if not more defenses and tools that a Dallas Criminal Defense Attorney has at their disposal.   One of those tools is called a grand jury packet.  A grand jury packet is a presentation that a Criminal Defense Attorney can put together to attempt to get a sexual assault case no billed or to make it go away.

A grand jury packet can include information that generally is not admissible in a court of law.  A criminal defense attorney is not allowed to go into the grand jury proceeding in person, but can send written material in to be consider.  This presentation can mean all the difference in whether or not the prosecution of a sexual assault case goes to the next stage.

Some of the items that can be included in a grand jury packet are:

• Letters of good character;
• Favorable polygraph results;
• Legal research
• Expert witness affidavits and reports
• Test reports from tests designed to determine a persons propensity to be a pedaphile;
• Military records
• School records
• Favorable psychological tests;
• Evidence of victims history of making false allegations; and
• Many other types of evidence that show the Defendant's innocence.

Utilizing these tools, however, requires that a person to contact and retain an attorney as soon as the allegation and learned about.  A grand jury packet has to be put together and submit before the grand jury meets to discuss that person's case.

Statutory Rape and Age of Consent in Texas

Statutory Rape is a type of sexual assault case in Texas in which the very age of the person the accused has had sex with makes it a sexual assault.  If the child is older than 14 years old, but younger than 17 years old and there is more than 3 years age difference between the child and the accused the Texas penal code 22.011 classifies it as sexual assault.

This is because in Texas the age of consent is 17.  A person 16 years old or younger cannot give consent to sexual intercourse.  It is important to note that this includes oral sex.

A statutory rape charge is most times brought by someone other than the minor child.  It is usually brought by someone in a position of authority that learns about the sexual activity or by the parents of the minor child.  The charge can even be brought by the State of Texas.

Sexual assault is a second degree felony in most cases.  If the accused case is not dismissed, the range of punishment for this offense includes probation or jail time between 2 and 20 years and an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.  It also includes sex offender registration, which is a lifetime requirement in most cases.

What Are the Penalties for Sexual Assault/Rape

A charge of sexual assault or rape is a very serious charge, which carries some very hefty penalties if convicted.  It is important to understand what those penalties are when you are thinking about how serious you want to be about fighting the charge.

Before I get into the penalties, however I want to address some of the emotions that a person may be going through if charged that may cause them to do the wrong thing.  When someone first finds out that they have been charged they are usually angry, frustrated, embarrassed and overwhelmed all at the same time.  These feelings cause the person to want to immediately go to the police and other people and give their version of what happened because they think it is the right thing to do. Wrong!  DO NOT GO TO THE POLICE OR TALK TO OTHER PEOPLE   about this charge without your attorney.  No matter what you say to the police or other authorities they will not believe you and will use everything that you say against you.  No matter how long you have known other people or how much you trust them, if you tell them anything you have just made them a witness. The first thing you should do before you do anything else is:

1. Get your emotions under control;
2.  Keep quite; and
3. Call an attorney.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about the potential penalties.  Sexual assault in most cases is a 2^nd degree felony.  In the state of Texas a 2^nd degree felony carries a possible punishment range of 2-20 years in prison and/or a fine not to exceed $10,000.  This offense can be elevated to a first degree felony if the alleged victim is under the age of 14 years old and was a person whom the alleged actor was prohibited from marrying, or purporting to marry or with whom the actor was prohibited from living under the appearance of being married. A first degree felony in Texas carries a possible range of punishment of 5 years to 99 years or life.  Of course probation of sentences is a possibility as well.

In addition to the possible penalties listed above there is also sex offender registration, which in most cases is lifetime.

There are many tools and defenses that can be used to fight this type charge.  The question is how serious are you about fighting them?  I take fighting them very seriously.  Call me.  Let’s talk about it.