Lewd and Lascivious Acts with a Minor Child PC 288

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Children carry our hope for the future. As the most innocent and vulnerable among us, they deserve protection from harm. So when we find out that an adult has used and mistreated a child for their own selfish pleasure, it’s only natural to want to see justice done.

It’s critically important, however, that our zeal for protecting children doesn’t cause us to prematurely condemn an innocent person.

The sad reality is that many people accused of sex crimes aren’t actually guilty of committing them. In order to ensure actual justice is done, we must carefully evaluate the facts of a case without letting emotion cloud our judgment. This is especially true in heated cases of alleged child molestation.

If you or a loved one has been accused of committing lewd acts with a minor, you need to understand that the stakes are incredibly high. Because of the nature of these allegations, many people will assume guilt before actually hearing the facts of the case, and a conviction—regardless of innocence or guilt—can ruin the accused’s life in more ways than one.

That’s why it’s essential to partner with a criminal defense attorney with the resources and experience to design a robust, rock-solid defense strategy. This article will explain everything you need to know about child molestation charges, including what constitutes a lewd act with a minor, the role of Penal Code 288, penalties for conviction and more.

At Elite Criminal Defense, we know that sex offense charges—particularly those involving children—can turn your whole world upside down. Building a top-tier defense takes time, which is why you need to secure legal advocacy now. Call us at (619) 642-2310 to get started. 

Let’s be clear: Any child molestation conviction can devastate your life, regardless of the specific penalties you incur. Even the suggestion that you’ve had sexual contact with a child is enough to decimate your social and professional life, ruin family connections and more, which is why it’s critical to avoid conviction.

That being said, some penalties are much harsher than others and should be avoided at all costs. Specific punishments depend on a number of key factors, including the following four:

1. The age of the child
2. Whether the lewd act was committed through the use of force, violence, duress or threats
3. Whether the defendant has a pattern of continuous sexual abuse
4. In cases where the child is 14 or 15, the defendant’s age

California law surrounding sex crimes and their corresponding penalties can be complex and involve multiple contingencies. Here are some of the various categorizations of lewd acts and their corresponding penalties under PC 288:

• When the child is under 14 and no force is used, a conviction may carry three, six or eight years in prison or under formal (felony) probation and a fine of up to $10,000.
• When the child is under 14 and force is used, penalties may include a five, eight or 10-year prison sentence and a fine of up to $10,000.
• When the child is under 14 and bodily injury is inflicted, the penalty may be life in prison.
• When the child is 14 or 15 years old and the defendant is at least 10 years older, penalties may include one to three years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 or up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
• When the child is 16 or 17 years old, the offense may be prosecuted as statutory rape or sexual battery and be penalized accordingly.
• If the defendant is deemed a habitual sex offender, they may face 25 years to life in prison.
• When the lewd act is accomplished through force by the caregiver of a dependent person, penalties may include five, eight or 10 years in California state prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

It’s important to note that in these examples, “force” also includes “duress” and “threats of harm.” This is by no means a comprehensive list of lewd acts and their penalties, but rather an illustration of how circumstances affect sentencing. There are many aggravating and mitigating factors that can affect your case’s final outcome, as well as your sentencing.

Lewd Acts Accomplished by Force or Fear

One of the most influential factors when determining penalties for lewd acts is the perpetrator’s means of accomplishment. For example, if the defendant is believed to have used force or fear to coerce a minor into performing lewd acts, they may be subject to much harsher penalties.

Here are some important legal definitions to know when talking about the means of accomplishment:

• Force is when someone restrains, incapacitates, threatens or hits a child for the purpose of committing lewd acts
• Fear refers to making a child feel afraid in order to compel them into participating in lewd acts
• Duress refers to when someone uses an implied threat of force, violence, danger, hardship or retribution for the purpose of making a reasonable individual submit to something that would otherwise not consider
• Menace refers to when someone uses threats, statements or actions to imply their intent to injure someone

If a defendant is found guilty of using any type of force, violence, duress or menace against a child to accomplish lewd acts, they may face felony conviction, fines, registration as a sex offender and more.

Additionally, a conviction of a lewd act by force or threat against a minor constitutes both a “strike” and a “serious felony” under California Penal Code 667. Under California’s “One Strike Law” (Penal Code 667.61), a defendant who personally inflicts bodily harm on a child under 14 must be sentenced to 25 years to life, and under its “Three Strikes” law, a defendant with a prior strike conviction will face an enhanced sentence.