Sexual Assault Penalties in Florida

Being arrested or being accused of a crime is distressing. Sexual assault crimes are serious and attract severe penalties, including prison time. If you are involved or convicted of sexual assault in Florida, it’s essential to understand the penalties. At Meltzer & Bell, P.A., our sex crime lawyers review your case, provide legal advice and defend you from sexual assault charges and the penalties in Florida.

Sexual Assault in Florida

Sexual assault is any form of sexual contact made against another without consent. In Florida, sexual assault is categorized under sexual battery. According to the Florida Statutes Section 794.011, sexual battery is any oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by or in union with another organ or another object without the victim’s consent. Sexual offenses are serious crimes that attract heavy penalties. The crimes may include:

Rape
Attempted rape
Unwanted sexual touch or fondling
Forcing a victim to perform sexual acts on the perpetrator’s body

Section 794.011 (2) (a)

If a person aged 18 years and over commits sexual battery upon a person below 12 years, the offender is guilty of a capital felony, which is punishable in the following ways.

775.082: A person that is convicted of a capital offense shall be punished by death or life imprisonment.
921.141: Separate proceedings shall happen after the conviction of a defendant guilty of a capital offense to determine if they should be sentenced to death or life imprisonment.

Section 794.011 (2) (b)

Suppose a person is below 18 years and commits sexual battery upon a victim less than 12 years of age. In that case, the person is guilty of a capital felony, which is punishable under the following sections.

775.082: Capital offenses are punishable by death or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. If the crime was committed before a person was 18 years and the courts find that life imprisonment is not a fitting punishment, the punishment shall be an imprisonment term of at least 40 years.
775.083: The fines for crimes shall not exceed $15,000 for a life felony.
775.084: For habitual violent felony offenders, the courts may impose an extended imprisonment term. A habitual offender has been convicted of any other felony crimes in the state. In addition, a habitual offender is one who commits the felony five years within the date of conviction of the other crime or within five years after release from a prison sentence, parole, community service, probation, conditional release, or court-imposed supervision.

Section 794.011 (3)

A person who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery upon the organs of a person 12 years and older without the person’s consent and uses physical force or deadly weapons and threats to cause harm commits a life felony. Life felonies are punishable under the following sections.

775.082 (3): A life felony committed on or after July 1, 1995, is punishable by life imprisonment or an imprisonment term not exceeding life imprisonment.
775.083 (1) (a): A person convicted of a life felony may be charged with a fine not exceeding $15,000.
775.084 (4) (a): A habitual offender may impose life imprisonment in the case of a life felony or a felony of the first degree.
794.0115 (2) (e): As described in this section, a dangerous sexual felony offender should be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of 25 years or 50 years imprisonment.

Section 794.011 (4) (a)

A person who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery upon the sexual organs of someone above 12 years but under 18 years without their consent is guilty of a felony of the first degree.

775.082 (6)(b)(1): For a felony of the first degree, the courts may impose imprisonment not exceeding 30 years or a term not exceeding life imprisonment.
775.083: A person convicted of a felony of the first degree shall pay a fine not exceeding $10,000.
775.084: Habitual violent felony offenses, including sexual battery, are punishable by mandatory minimum imprisonment.
794.0115: Under the Dangerous Sexual Felony Offender Act, a sexual assault felony is punishable by a mandatory minimum imprisonment term of 15 years. However, if the felony was committed after October 1, 2014, the minimum mandatory imprisonment term is 50 years. Both sentences can be extended to life imprisonment.

Section 794.011 (4) (b)

A person who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery upon another person 18 years and older but without their consent is guilty of a felony of the first degree. The punishments are also laid out in sections 775.082, 775.083, 775.084, and 794.0115.

Section 794.011 (4) (c)

A person who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery of a person 12 years and older, but without consent, is guilty of a felony of the first degree and is punishable under sections 775.082, 775.083, 775.084, and 794.0115.

Indecent Exposure and Lewdness

Section 800.02

Chapter 800 covers lewdness and indecent exposure. In Section 800.02, a person who commits an unnatural or lascivious act with another person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree and is punishable as explained in:

775.082 (4) (b): A person who is convicted of a misdemeanor of the second degree may be punished by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 60 days.
775.083 (1) (d): A fine for a misdemeanor of the second degree shall not exceed $1,000.

Section 800.03

This section covers the indecent exposure of sexual organs. It includes the exposure of sexual organs in a public area or in a private area in the presence of another person.

The first violation of this section is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by:

775.082 (4) (a): Imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year
775.083 (d): A fine not exceeding $1,000

However, if a person is convicted a second or third time for indecent exposure, they have committed a felony of the third degree punishable as follows:

775.083 (1) (c): A fine not exceeding $15,000
775.084: Extended or minimum mandatory imprisonment for habitual offenders

Section 800.04

If a person is convicted of lewdness and lascivious acts in the presence of a person below 16 years of age and commits sexual activity, or coerces, encourages or encourages a person below 16years to engage in sexual acts, the person commits a felony of the second degree.

In addition, if a person is 18 years and older and violates this section while being previously convicted of;

Sexual battery against a minor (Chapter 794)
Kidnapping a child under 13 years (s 787.01)
Falsely imprisoning a child under 13 years (s 787.02)
Sexual abuse against an elderly or disabled person (s 825. 1025)
or computer pornography (s 847. 0135)

; the person is guilty of a felony of the first degree. The punishments for these crimes are explained in sections 775.082, 775.083, and 775.084.

Under Section 800.04 (5), a person is guilty of lewd or lascivious molestation if they touch the buttocks, breasts, genitals, or clothes covering the genital area of a person below 16 years, or forces the underage person to touch the genital organs of the perpetrator.

If the offender is 18 years and older and commits the crime against a person under 12 years, the offender commits a life felony punishable under section 775.082
If the offender is 18 years and older commits the offense against a person of 12 years and older but not above 16 years, the offender commits a felony of the second degree punishable under sections 775.082, 775.083, 775.084
If an offender is less than 18 years and commits lewd and lascivious molestation of a person or victim above 12 years, but below 16 years, the offender is guilty of a felony of the third degree and is punishable under sections 775.082, 775.083, 775.084.

Statutory Rape

Sexual assault or sexual battery of a minor is a serious offense in Florida. Although the laws in Florida do not explicitly mention statutory rape, section 794.001 states the following offenses against minors.

794.001 (2) (a): An offender who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery on a victim below 12 years is guilty of a capital offense. A capital felony is punishable by death or life imprisonment with no possibility for parole.
794.001 (2) (b): An offender below 18 years who commits sexual battery on a victim below 12 years is guilty of a life felony. A life felony is punishable by life imprisonment, a prison term not exceeding life imprisonment or a fine not exceeding $15,000.
794.001 (3): An offender who commits sexual battery on a victim 12 years and older without their consent and uses threats, deadly weapons, and physical force to coerce a victim commits a life felony.
794.001 (4) (a): An offender who is 18 years and older and commits sexual battery against a victim of 12 years and older but below 18 years without their consent commits a felony of the first degree. The crime is punishable by imprisonment for 30 years, a fine not exceeding $10,000, and mandatory prison time.

Get a Sexual Assault Attorney in Florida

If you have been convicted of a sex crime in Florida, it’s crucial to hire a sex crime lawyer to review your case, prepare the defenses and mitigate your sentence. With sex crimes, you face prison time, fines, and registration, which opens you to public scrutiny.

Contact Meltzer & Bell for a free consultation for your sexual assault case today.