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NYC Facilitating a Sexual Offense with a Controlled Substance Lawyers
The state of New York’s penal code states that the facilitation of a sexual offense with a controlled substance is a crime that has been committed when the following circumstances are met:
- The perpetrator unlawfully and knowingly possesses a substance requiring a prescription or a controlled substance
- The perpetrator administers this substance to another individual without obtaining the consent of that person, with the intention of committing a felony sex crime against that person
- The perpetrator commits or attempts to commit a sexual offense against the person in question
The facilitation of a sexual offense with a controlled substance is a serious crime that has a classification of class D felony. Convictions carry sentences of up to seven years in prison. The crime has a particular seriousness because it’s both a sex crime and a drug crime. Because of the seriousness of this charge, it’s essential for you to contact an experienced attorney from the moment you’re accused to the closure of the case.
If you need a criminal lawyer due to being charged with or having a loved one charged with the facilitation of a sexual offense with a controlled substance, Spodek Law Group is a collection of experienced lawyers who have been defending clients since 1976. An attorney can review the facts of the case, explain your options, and outline your best plan going forward.
The Definition of the Offense
For a charge to be brought against a perpetrator, a controlled substance must have been used. Controlled substances are defined as drugs in the Schedule V, IV, III, II, or I category. This includes stimulants, depressants, hallucinogenic substances, and opiates.
One example of this crime in court is People v. Blackwood, a 2013 case. The defendant stood accused of slipping ecstasy into the drink of the victim. This example doesn’t cover all potential areas that this charge might be brought against a person, however; a drug doesn’t need to be illegal for this crime to have occurred. The 2011 case People v. Stahl involved a defendant who had been accused of administering Xanax, a prescription drug, to the victim without their consent.
The lack of consent is an important part of the crime. New York’s sex offenses statute outlines a variety of ways to illustrate lack of consent. These include forcible compulsion for the administration of the drug. Forcible compulsion is designed as the use of physical force or a verbal threat made against the victim.
After the substance has been administered and the person has become intoxicated, the victim does not have the ability to consent to sexual acts. When people are intoxicated by substances that have been administered without consent, they are mentally incapacitated. A person cannot consent to sexual acts while incapacitated.
When a person has been incapacitated by an intoxicating substance, it’s required that corroborating evidence of sex crimes and sexual assaults. During People v. Blackwood, testimony was provided by the victim’s friends regarding what happened after the victim was administered the ecstasy. Lab tests also proved that ecstasy was in the victim’s system and the defendant’s semen was found in her.
You can still be charged with the facilitation of a sexual offense with a controlled substance even if the sexual offense is not completed. The only necessary qualification is the attempt at committing a sexual offense. This sexual offense doesn’t have to be rape; any felony sexual offense will qualify. You will also most likely have other charges leveled against you related both to the possession of the controlled substance and to the assault.