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Criminal Sexual Assault in Illinois

On Behalf of | Jun 7, 2016 | Criminal Defense |

Criminal Sexual Assaults on Campuses and Beyond

The number of forcible sex crimes reported on U.S. college and university campuses more than doubled to 5,000 between 2001 and 2013. In fact, reports of sex crimes increased by nearly 1,000 from 2012 to 2013 alone according to the National Center for Education Statistics, the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the American Institutes for Research. Interestingly, the increase comes as the number of overall crimes reported by colleges fell by 34%, to 27,600 between 2001 and 2013. For more information on these statistics check out: Wall Street Journal Article

It is unclear whether there has been an increase in the number of criminal sexual assault charges brought by state and local police departments against defendants during the same time period. It is unlikely that the increase of reported sexual assaults on campus mirror the number of reports made to a police department for a variety of reasons.

If campus investigators or detectives are investigating you or a loved one for a possible sexual assault you should consider consulting with an attorney. A campus investigation or investigation by a police officer may have serious implications.

In Illinois, a violation of 720 ILCS 5/11-1.20 entitled Criminal Sexual Assault provides:

A person commits criminal sexual assault if that person commits an act of sexual penetration and:

(1) uses force or threat of force;

(2) knows that the victim is unable to understand the nature of the act or is unable to give knowing consent;

(3) is a family member of the victim, and the victim is under 18 years of age; or

(4) is 17 years of age or over and holds a position of trust, authority, or supervision in relation to the victim, and the victim is at least 13 years of age but under 18 years of age.

Generally, a conviction of criminal sexual assault is a Class 1 Felony. Under certain circumstances a person may suffer a Class X Felony. For more information check out: Illinois Criminal Code.

For a free consultation contact Richard L. Fenbert at 630-917-2051 or email him at [email protected]