Imagine that you are in a nightclub while on vacation and have connected with another person on vacation. Now imagine that the next day, you’re facing sexual assault charges. What do you do?
The first place to start is to understand what sexual assault means in the eyes of the law in Florida.
An accusation of sexual assault means that an individual has been accused of making sexual contact or exhibiting sexual behavior against another person without their consent. When people think of sex crimes they tend to think of rape, but sexual assault comes in a variety of forms:
- Rape – oral, anal, vaginal penetration
- Fondling and molestation
- Forcible object penetration
- Sexual contact with minors
The key component of sexual assault is lack of consent. Under Florida law, consent is defined as “intelligent, knowing, and voluntary consent…consent should not be construed as a failure by the alleged victim to physically resist the offender.” Sexual advances that are unwanted or without consent include using physical force, using threats to get the victim to comply, misleading the victim about intentions, or touching or penetrating a victim when they have said “no” or “stop.”
Non-consent is also touching or performing a sexual act on a person that is powerless to consent due to age, mental incapacity, or unconsciousness. Consent should always be very clear in any sexual encounter.