Unlawful Sexual Contact Attorney in Morrison, Conifer and Wheat Ridge

When men and women drink alcohol during the Christmas party season, they sometimes forget boundaries and make sexual contact with someone without their permission. It could be as simple as touching someone on the dance floor, or brushing up against a woman’s breast as she passes in a crowded bar. Whatever the case, this type of sexual touch is classified as Unlawful Sexual Contact, a class one misdemeanor sexual offense in Colorado.

Definition for Unlawful Sexual Contact in Adams County and Denver County

In Denver, Thornton and Northglenn, sexual offenses are taken more seriously than most crimes in the eyes of the law. To be safe, you must know what is a violation of the law, and what is not. The definition of Unlawful Sexual Contact is:

Any actor who knowingly subjects a victim to any sexual contact commits unlawful sexual contact if:

a) The actor knows that the victim does not consent; or

b) The actor knows that the victim is incapable of appraising the nature of the victim’s conduct; or

c) The victim is physically helpless and the actor knows that the victim is physically helpless and the victim has not consented; or

d) The actor has substantially impaired the victim’s power to appraise or control the victim’s conduct by employing, without the victim’s consent, any drug, intoxicant, or other means for the purpose of causing submission; or

f) The victim is in custody of law or detained in a hospital or other institution and the actor has supervisory or disciplinary authority over the victim and uses this position of authority, unless incident to a lawful search, to coerce the victim to submit

C.R.S. 18-3-404.

Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification in Arapahoe County, C.R.S. 18-3-405.6

Similar to Unlawful Sexual Contact, is the Arapahoe County crime of Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification. It implicates sexual boundary violations and harsh punishment. Rather than a physical touch, however, this crime involves taking a picture or video of someone at a time when they have a reasonable expectation of privacy. We are not talking about someone who is in a public place normally. It generally gets charged when someone is in a bathroom, dressing room, or private residence, and another person takes a picture or video. This type of crime used to be called Peeping Tom, but with the invention of convenient cameras on cell phones, the breadth of the crime has expanded and changed.

Lawyer’s Definition of Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification in Douglas County

Here is the definition of Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification, in Douglas County:

“A person who knowingly observes or takes a photograph of another person’s intimate parts without that person’s consent, in a situation where the person observed or photographed has a reasonable expectation of privacy, for the purpose of the observer’s own sexual gratification, commits unlawful invasion of privacy for sexual gratification.”  Read more about the Definition of Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratificaiton.

Sentence and Punishment for Unlawful Sexual Contact and Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification

Even though these two crimes are very different, they carry nearly the same penalties under Colorado law. A class 1 extraordinary risk misdemeanor crime means they both are punishable by 6 to 24 months in the Denver, Golden, and Weld County Jail and a maximum $5,000 fine. Each crime also requires the defendant to register as a sex offender and undergo complete sex offender treatment (SOMB treatment). The punishment does not fit these crimes.

Whether you or a friend are being charged with Unlawful Sexual Contact or Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification, never speak with police. Exercise your constitutional right to remain silent. Then, call our criminal defense lawyers 303-731-0719. Together, we can protect your future.

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