Sexual Assault Lawyer St. Louis, MO. If you or a family member has been charged with sexual assault or sexual abuse in Missouri, you should be well aware that these are very serious charges indeed. You’ve also probably noticed that there’s been a massive shift in how sexual assault allegations are handled at all levels across America, from culturally to politically and even legally. At Combs Law Group, we have always supported the idea that women should be able to come forward and report legitimate sexual assault or abuse allegations to authorities without fear of reprisal or retaliation. We do not condone sexual assault or abuse of any kind.
However, at the same time we also believe that sexual assault suspects are entitled to due process under law, just like anyone accused of any other crime. Sexual assault crimes in St. Louis are no different than other crimes in the sense that not every allegation made against a suspect is 100% true. Most importantly, someone who has been accused of sexual assault, just like any other crime, is innocent until proven guilty. This is an important concept to remember if you are currently facing charges–just because someone has brought forth allegations and police believe the accuser does not mean you are guilty. This is something that has been lost in the current climate, where the existence of allegations seemingly automatically proves guilt in the minds of many people, and we believe this is unfortunate.
Combs Law Group is here to advocate for you if you have been accused of sexual abuse in St. Louis. We will provide you with the legal guidance you need to fight any allegations, clear your good name, and protect your hard-earned reputation in the community. Call us today at (314) 900-HELP for a confidential conversation about your St. Louis sexual assault allegations and how our firm will provide you with the legal guidance you need to fight these allegations.
Sexual Assault/Abuse Laws In Missouri
Missouri’s statutes relating to sexual abuse have become radically simplified in recent years. They are found in the Missouri Revised Statutes as RS 566.100 and RS 566.101. Missouri law separates sexual abuse into two different degrees: first-degree is defined as “subjecting another person to sexual contact when that person is incapacitated, incapable of consent, lacks the capacity to consent, or by the use of forcible compulsion”, whereas second-degree sexual abuse is if someone “purposely subjects another person to sexual contact without that person’s consent”.
First-degree sexual assault is a class C felony in Missouri, punishable by anywhere from 3 to 10 years in state prison, whereas second-degree sexual assault is a class A misdemeanor, which carries with it the penalty of up to a year in county jail and $2,000 in fines. However, if prosecutors find that your crime was an “aggravated sexual offense”, the charges are automatically upgraded–they become a class E felony (1-4 years in prison) for second-degree charges, and a class B felony (5-15 years’ imprisonment) for first-degree sexual abuse.
What To Do If You’re Accused Of Sexual Assault
While statistics have shown that roughly 60% of sexual assault crimes go unreported, the change in the social climate over the past few years (with movements like #MeToo, #TimesUp, and #BelieveWomen coming to the fore) has meant that more and more women have come forward to report sexual abuse. Once again, our firm believes this is a good thing. However, along with more allegations being made, there will be more accusations that it turns out are false or baseless. Maybe it could be because these accusations will be made to hurt the accused party (such as an unscrupulous person looking for revenge), or it could be because years after the fact the accuser interprets events differently. Most sexual abuse cases are not cut-and-dry: you will usually find two people will have two radically different accounts of what actually happened.
If you have been accused of sexual assault, and ultimately charged with a crime, you should be well aware that you will need to be prepared to defend yourself. What you eventually do depends on the circumstances of the allegations and your particular situation, but the first thing you should do is keep quiet and call a St. Louis criminal defense lawyer with experience in sexual assault cases.
Contact An Experienced St. Louis Criminal Defense Attorney
Combs Law Group has a proven track record of defending their clients against all sorts of criminal charges, including sexual abuse charges. Cases like sexual assault in Missouri require a criminal law firm that knows how to create a legal strategy that mitigates the charges and evidence. Our firm gives personal attention to all of our clients and creates a bespoke legal strategy that is designed to get you the optimal result no matter what you have been charged with. In addition, sexual assault cases are usually built primarily on the credibility of the accuser’s statements, with little or no physical evidence. This is a difficult problem to address, seeing as most of American society defaults to automatically believing an accuser, but there is a delicate way to address this–which our firm is well-equipped to do.
If you are accused of sexual assault of any kind in St. Louis, your life will be turned upside-down immediately. Your character and reputation will be damaged regardless of whether the charges are true or not. The only way to repair your reputation is to fight charges aggressively from the start, which Combs Law Group will help you do. Our firm will create a criminal defense strategy that looks to fully exonerate you from your St. Louis sexual assault charges. Whether we are able to get the charges dismissed or dropped, or our firm will have to fight the charges in court, we will work diligently to help you repair your reputation and protect you from legal ramifications. Contact Combs Law Group today to begin the sexual abuse defense process as soon as possible.