In the state of Florida, sex crimes refer to aggravated acts of sexual misconduct, sexual battery, incest, lewd and lascivious offenses, prostitution, and child pornography.
In legal terms, a criminal investigation into a sex crime can be initiated either upon the alleged victim contacting authorities and/or during a sting operation by law enforcement officers. This may encompass warrants to tap phone lines and explore electronic devices.
While conducting sex crime sting operations is permitted for law enforcement authorities and the State, they are not permitted to promote illegal activities to make people engage in actions that they may otherwise have not engaged in.
However, law enforcement authorities may extract any evidence that they can use against the defendant, meaning innocuous persons might fall prey to misleading tactics that approach or equal entrapment.
In many of these cases, the consequences can be severe for the accused, including social stigma associated with arrest records, sex offender registration, biased media opinion, and so on.
A trusted way to handle and fight back damaging accusations and clear your name of sex crime charges in Florida is by consulting with a St. Petersburg federal criminal defense lawyer who is experienced in handling sensitive cases such as these.