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Pennsylvania Sexual Assault Lawyers
Few crimes are as heinous and unthinkable as sexual assault crimes. Rape and sexual assault charges are among the most serious in the world, and they are often looked upon as worse than murder. The simple fact of the matter is that anyone who is arrested and charged with sexual assault faces more punishment than simply going to jail or paying some fines. Anyone who is convicted of sexual assault could be labeled as a predator depending on the age of the victim, and anyone who is even accused of sexual assault might spend the rest of their life facing judgment and discrimination even if the charges are dropped. If you’re arrested and charged with sexual assault in Pennsylvania, you need to contact a criminal defense attorney right away.
What is Sexual Assault?
Rape is not a sexual assault in Pennsylvania. The law clearly states that sexual assault does not include rape. It does, however, include the forceful sexual assault of an unwilling person in any and every other manner of speaking. Sexual assault can include anything from forcing someone against their will to perform any sexual act other than rape, but it does include the use of foreign objects for penetration purposes if the other party does not consent. Sexual assault can occur when you are with a stranger, and it can even occur with your own spouse or significant other if they claim they did not consent to the act when it was being performed.
Sexual assault involves forcing another person to perform sex acts without their consent. Consent is a spoken agreement between two parties who are both interested in the same act. If one party disagrees to engage in any type of sexual behavior with another person, it’s assault if the other person goes through with the act regardless. Furthermore, it’s also considered assault if the other party is unable to provide consent because they are not within their right mind to do so, they are not awake, or they are not mentally present enough to provide consent.
Sexual Assault Penalties
The penalties for sexual assault are harsh, and they extend far beyond the court of law in many instances. Legally, you could spend time in jail, you could become a sexual predator on a national list, and you could pay as much as $25,000 in fines in addition to being required to register as a sex offender. Even if you are released from jail after your sentence is complete, you will spend the rest of your life being punished for your crimes.
It’s difficult to land a job as a registered sex offender. You cannot find housing easily because you are not permitted to be within so many feet of kids, parks, schools, other areas if you sexually assaulted a child. People aren’t willing to trust sexual predators, so you will find the rest of your life is plagued with many issues other than jail time and fines. Even sexual predators in jail are commonly treated differently than other inmates. If you are convicted of sexual assault, your life changes forever. There’s nothing you can do about it after that.
How An Attorney Can Help
If you can hire an attorney to help you fight your sexual assault charges, it’s recommended you do so. An attorney can make it possible to have your assault charges either dropped or minimized, and they can fight to minimize the amount of time you are forced to add your name to the national sex offender registry. It might still last up to 15 years, but you do have a chance of one day being considered a normal human rather than a sex offender.
Call an attorney. It might be your only chance to prove your case and prevent your future from changing forever. Your attorney will fight the evidence, present new evidence, and help you prove you did not do this if you are innocent.