Sexual Offences
Sexual Touching
Sexual touching used to be called an indecent assault. Sexual touching involves the touching and/or incitement of a person to touch/assault another person sexually.
This can include anything from an unwanted kissing of another person, to touching a person over their clothing in a sexual area, i.e. vagina, penial, breast area.
What is the penalty for sexual touching?
The maximum penalty for sexual touching is five years’ imprisonment.
What are the possible defences to sexual touching?
It is important to remember to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Some possible defences to sexual touching are:
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- Duress
- Necessity
- Self-defence
- Consent of the other party
- That the touching was not sexual in nature
- Incidental touching
It is important to remember that you need to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Was is a Sexual Act?
A sexual act was more typically known as an act of indecency.
A sexual act is anything that is done with or towards another person without consent (other than touching) that a reasonable person would consider to be sexual in nature. This can be because the act was completed for the person to obtain sexual arousal and/or involves a sexual part of the person’s body.
Common examples include masturbating towards a person.
What is the penalty for a sexual act?
The maximum penalty for a sexual act is 18 months’ imprisonment.
What are the possible defences for the offence of a sexual act?
It is important to remember to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Some possible defences to the offence of sexual act are:
- Duress
- Necessity
- Self Defence
- The act was done for medical and/or hygienic purposes
It is important to remember that you need to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Sexual Assault / Rape
A sexual assault is colloquially known as ‘rape’ and is any intercourse with another person without the consent of the other person, knowing that the other person does not consent.
The notion of consent need not be explicit; it can be inferred that a person does not consent if the other person is reckless as to consent.
It is important to understand that the notion of sexual intercourse includes the insertion of any object or bodily part into the person, including but not limited to oral sex.
What is the penalty for Sexual Assault?
The maximum penalty for sexual assault is 14 years’ imprisonment.
The maximum penalty for aggravated sexual assault is 20 years imprisonment, and for aggravated sexual assault in company, the maximum penalty is life imprisonment.
What are the possible defences to sexual assault?
It is important to remember to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Some possible defences to the offence of sexual assault are:
- Consent or a reasonable belief that consent had been given
- No sexual intercourse ever took place
It is important to remember that you need to obtain expert legal advice from a qualified solicitor at the earliest opportunity to see if you may have a defence available to you. Catron Simmons Lawyers can assist you and ensure that your interests are represented.
Distributing/Recording An intimate Image without Consent
The prosecution must prove that the images were distributed and/or recorded intentionally AND that this action was done without consent of the victim or in a manner where a person was reckless to obtaining that consent.
What is the penalty?
The maximum penalty for Distributing or Recording an Intimate Image without consent is $11,000.00 and/or 3 years imprisonment.
What are the possible defences?
- Consent
- Genuine Medical and/or scientific purpose
- Genuine law enforcement purpose or for legal proceedings
- A reasonable person would consider the conduct of the accused person was acceptable having regard to the circumstances.
Threatening to distribute an intimate image without consent
The prosecution must prove that the person intended to cause or was reckless to the fear that these threats would cause a reasonable person if they were in fact carried out.
What is the penalty?
The maximum penalty for threatening to distributing or recording an intimate image without consent is $11,000.00 and/or 3 years imprisonment.
What are the possible defences?
- Consent
- No intention to cause fears
- A reasonable person would consider the conduct of the accused person was acceptable having regard to the circumstances.
Could an offence of this nature prevent me from getting certain jobs?
Yes, convictions especially, involving children will affect job prospects.
For instance, Point to Point Drivers such as Uber and/or Taxi Drivers are disqualified under clause 24 (1)(2) of the Point to Point Transport (Taxis and Hire Vehicles) Regulation 2017 to hold a taxi or hire vehicle licence.
Helpful Information
What are the alternatives to imprisonment?
You should obtain legal advice before going to court and pleading guilty to any offence. A well-presented sentencing will ensure that you receive the best outcome for your situation.
In NSW, a court can impose any of these types of penalties:
Non Conviction Dismissal (s10(1)a)
This is an order of the court that means there is no conviction recorded and no further action/penalties. Essentially, as soon as you leave the court, the matter is completely finalised.
Conviction Only s10A
This is an order from the court that means you are convicted of the offence, but there is no further penalty, and the matter is completely finalised once you leave the courtroom.
Community Release Order (CRO)
A CRO is the less serious of the bonds; there are two forms: conviction CRO and non-conviction CRO. These bonds can be supervised by Community Corrections or not; it is a matter for the court. That said, the court can order supervision, and Community Corrections can discontinue it if it deems it appropriate. A standard condition of all orders is that an offender must not commit any offence and must appear in court if called upon. Additional conditions can also be imposed, as with any other bond, including, but not limited to, alcohol/drug restrictions and/or rehabilitation, curfews, community service orders, and non-association and/or place-restriction orders.
Fine
A Court can order a fine as the whole or part of a penalty, meaning the court can order a bond in conjunction with a fine. A fine is a conviction. The maximum fine available for each offence varies and is usually expressed in penalty units. Generally speaking, after the court has sentenced you and imposed a fine, you have 28 days to pay; however, the court registry may extend this period and arrange a payment plan. Failure to pay the fine will result in an enforcement order, which may lead to suspension of your driver’s licence and/or registration. Following this, further orders, such as a civil enforcement order, community service, and/or goal, may be utilised instead.
Community Corrections Order (CCO)
A CCO is the more serious of the bonds and is used when the offence is too serious to be dealt with by way of a fine or CRO. The CCO cannot exceed three years. This bond can be supervised or unsupervised by Community Corrections. A standard condition of all orders is that an offender must not commit any offence and must appear in court if called upon. The court can add additional orders, including but not limited to alcohol/drug restrictions and/or rehabilitation, curfew, community service orders, non-association and/or place restriction orders.
Intensive Correction Order (ICO)
An ICO is a type of imprisonment or custodial sentence that can be served in the community under strict conditions and supervision. The ICO is the most serious court order that can be served on an offender in the community and is not available for a number of offences involving Violence, breaches of public safety, and child-related matters. The court can impose conditions on an ICO, such as home detention, electronic monitoring, curfews, community service, alcohol/drug restrictions, place restrictions, association orders, and/or whatever the court deems appropriate. An ICO is monitored and supervised by Probation and Parole NSW, and any breaches of the order are referred to the NSW State Parole Authority (SPA) and not the courts. Often, the offender is required to then serve the remainder of their sentence in custody as a result of a serious breach.
What are my options? What is a conviction?
A conviction means that the court has found you guilty and has decided to record the offence in a ‘formal’ declaration.
It is possible to have a matter ‘proven, but no conviction recorded’ if the court sees fit. This is commonly referred to as a s10 (although it is now a Community Release Order without conviction or s10(1)a)).
If convicted of any offence, this is recorded on your criminal record. The existence of a criminal record may affect future employment and travel, especially to countries like the United States.
If you believe you are not guilty of an offence, it is important to get legal advice early, as the court offers discounts for early pleas in sentencing.
What is written notice of pleading? Should I complete it?
A Written Notice of Pleading is a document that is given to you by the police when charged, or a letter or document sent to the court outlining your wish to plead guilty to the charges enforced by the court.
Although this can be an attractive option, the forms are straightforward, and you wouldn’t need to attend court, this is actually a bad idea. A written notice prevents the court from understanding more about you as a person, your income, responsibilities, and factors that could mitigate the punishment or sentence.
On a written plea of guilty, the magistrate has only the Police Fact Sheet and Criminal Record for information, and the penalty imposed is often greater, as the Court is not aware of the above factors. It is important to understand and agree with the contents of any fact sheet before it is tendered, as the court will base all its decisions on it.
At Catron Simmons Lawyers, we can put forward the best case in your defence, often leading to a fairer and more just outcome.