Sexual assault and battery charges tend to arise when a person feels uneasy due to murky interactions. In such situations, a touch is often misinterpreted or is considered to be a consensual gesture. However, it is violent in nature and mostly intentional. If you commit any sexual assault or battery crimes in Virginia, there are multiple defined laws and legislation for the heinous crime. One of such sexual crime is aggravated sexual battery in Virginia that comes with long prison sentence as well as hefty fines. Regardless of completing the sentence, the individual will have to register himself or herself as a sex offender that will affect their personal and professional lives.
Considering the charges you face for this sex crime, it becomes difficult for the offender to hire a criminal defense attorney to fight the case. If someone is in such a situation, it is crucial for him or her to hire an experienced attorney who can tell them about the consequences they could face during and after the case. In addition, attorneys can also help them to be well aware of the defenses to strengthen their point of view. It is important to understand and raise all defenses as they play a key role to get charges against you for aggravated sexual battery in Virginia either reduced or dismissed.
If we talk about a simple sexual battery, it is the offense that involves assaulting someone sexually. It is an unwanted sexual conduct that is not only done against the will of the person, but with the use of threats and force. It includes a variety of factors, such as touching a person’s intimate parts or forcing someone to touch someone’s body parts using intimidation.
Whereas, aggravated sexual battery in Virginia is similar to simple sexual battery offense, but with additional implications. This includes, misdemeanor offense on victims that are under 13 years old or people who are physically and mentally disabled. Furthermore, if the perpetrator is the victim’s parent, grandparent, or step-parent, aggravated sexual battery in Virginia is a felony charge, unlike a simple sexual battery.
The maximum charges that an individual could face is a hefty fine of up to $100,000 or sentence to prison for up to 20 years.
In such scenarios, one should not take the charges imposed against you lightly. As discussed above, the criminal charges for aggravated sexual battery in Virginia is spending a major chunk of your life in prison and a hefty fine that is impossible to pay. In addition, your character will be labeled as a sex offender that is bound to negatively affect your life. Regardless, a quality criminal defense attorney will investigate the case thoroughly but will find out the facts allowing themselves to prepare a strong defense. This way, their primary goal is to get the charges against you reduced or dismissed.