Sexual Misconduct with a Minor
Sex Crime Attorney Serving Cumming, Dahlonega, & Surrounding Areas
Being convicted of a sex crime against a minor in Georgia tarnishes your name and can land you in prison for decades. Retaining skilled legal counsel is important if you have been charged with a sex crime.
The accused can rely on me, sex crimes attorney Andrew J. Richman, for my dedicated legal counsel. I firmly believe you are innocent until proven guilty, and I will help strategize a defense for your case of sexual misconduct with a minor.
Accused of sexual misconduct with a minor? The time to start your defense strategy is now, even if you haven’t been arrested yet. Contact me at Richman Law Firm at (678) 829-2826 to begin.
What is the Legal Age of Consent in Georgia?
The legal age of consent in Georgia is 16. In the state, it is illegal to engage in sexual activity with a person under the age of 16 years old. There are certain exceptions to this law, including spouses who are at least 18 or their partners under the age of 20 and within four years of their partner's age. However, regardless of these exceptions, any sexual activity involving someone under 16 is strictly prohibited by law.
Defending the Criminally Accused Against Sex Crime Charges in Georgia
“Sexual misconduct with a minor” is a broad category and includes multiple crimes involving illegal sexual contact initiated by adults to children under the age of 16.
Specific prohibited sex acts violating Georgia’s age of consent law include:
- Statutory rape: Statutory rape is a form of sexual misconduct with a minor in which the victim is not able to legally consent due to young age. Felony statutory rape constitutes an adult over the age of 21 having sexual contact with a victim under the age of 16. Georgia does not have a close-in-age exemption, commonly known as “Romeo and Juliet laws,” which prevent individuals from being prosecuted if they are significantly close in age to the alleged victim. For example, a 15-year-old still may not consent to sexual activity with a 16 or 17-year-old partner. However, penalties are generally much less severe if the victims are close in age.
- Child molestation: Convictions for this felony charge are penalized by up to life imprisonment. Child molestation, per Georgia law, involves immoral or indecent acts performed on a child or within close proximity of a child. Child molestation may have an aggravating factor if sodomy is involved in any way, or if the child is physically harmed.
- Sexual assault: A person with supervisory or disciplinary control over another person, such as a teacher and student, may not have sexual contact. Consent is not a defense, even if the alleged victim was over the age of 16.
- Sexual battery: Per Georgia law, sexual battery of a minor is the crime of intentional physical contact with a child’s intimate parts, defined as the “genitals, anus, groin, inner thighs, or buttocks of a male or female and breasts of a female.” Sexual battery may have an aggravating factor if the person intentionally penetrates the child with a foreign object without their consent. “Foreign object” is defined as anything “other than the sexual organ of a person.” A first-time conviction of aggravated sexual battery of a minor can result in a prison sentence of between 25 years to life, followed by lifelong probation.
- Incest: Convictions for adults having sexual relations with a blood-related child are harshly punished in Georgia. Per Georgia code § 16-6-22, incest with a child victim under the age of 14 is punishable by up to 50 years in prison.
Facing charges of sexual conduct with a minor in Cumming, Dahlonega, or a surrounding county? Don’t wait to retain a skilled sex crime defense lawyer. Contact me online or call (678) 829-2826 today.
