Fort Myers Rape Charges

Virtually every sexual assault crime (rape, sexual battery, oral copulation or sodomy) contains the element of "against the victim’s will." What that means, is the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim did not consent to the sexual activity.

Statutory Rape in Fort Myers

Statutory rape is charged when a man or a woman has engaged in a sexual act with a minor under the legal age of consent, regardless of whether the minor said that he/she consented to the sexual act.  In the state of Florida, the legal age of consent is 18.  It does not matter if the minor consented to the act of sexual intercourse.  Florida state law says that a minor does not have the ability to give his/her consent to engage in sexual intercourse.

The law does not care what you did or didn’t know, believed or did not believe at the time of the alleged statutory rape case.  The law doesn’t punish the minor if he/she lied to you about their age.  A person can be found guilty of the crime of statutory rape even if they honestly believed the other person was 18 years of age or older. They can also be found guilty of the crime even if the victim consented to have sex and gave false information regarding his/her age.

Date Rape in Fort Myers

What has come to be commonly referred to as "date rape" is a forcible sexual act between two people that have a previous "familiar" relationship, often through social association. The familiar relationship is not a defense to this type of charge.  Often, with cases such as these, consent becomes the main issue.  One party will say consent was given while the other alleges it was not.

Consent to sex can never be given by physically incapacitated persons (intoxicated, asleep, unconscious, ill, or drugged).  Date rape may involve drugs such as rohypnol (ruphies) or alcohol used to further the commission of the sexual act.  Likewise, "voluntary intoxication" by the victim is not a defense to crimes such as sexual assault.  "Voluntary intoxication" by the perpetrator of the crime is also not a defense.

Forcible Rape in Fort Myers

Forcible rape can happen as a "random" act amongst strangers, it can also happen between two people that know each other, and it can happen in conjunction with a violent crime.  

Sexual Battery in Fort Myers

"Sexual battery" has a very broad definition and many actions, short of rape and certain other statutorily specified crimes, can fall into this "catch all" category. "Sexual battery" is defined as touching by one person upon another, that is of a sexual nature, and that is unwanted.  This definition is broad and vague for a reason.  What one person may consider a "sexual battery" and what another person may consider a "sexual battery" is subjective and can be two very different things.

If you or a loved one has been targeted charged with rape or other sex-related criminal offense, you need a skilled, knowledgeable, and experienced sex crimes defense lawyer representing you.  At The Law Firm of Scott T. Moorey, our sex crimes defense team can help.   Our sex crimes defense attorneys will scrutinize statements from the accuser and witnesses, if any exist.

Call us or fill out our online contact form today for a free consultation.