If I’m Being Investigated For Sexual Assault, Is It Likely I’m Going To Be Arrested Soon?
Generally, if law enforcement want to talk to you, it may mean they have a hole in their case. If they’re investigating you, it means that they don’t yet have enough information to charge you. By giving a statement you may be providing the information they need to charge you.
In criminal sexual conduct cases, there’s often an immediate arrest. There are many times these cases are investigated for months or even more than a year, though. If you aren’t arrested immediately, it normally will take a few months for the case to come to court.
If you have an attorney on the case, your attorney will be in contact with law enforcement and prosecutor’s office prior to you being charged. If law enforcement can’t get a statement from you, they may arrest you just to have you sit in jail for 48 hours to entice you to make a statement. They lead you to believe you can get out of jail by giving the statement, and then your statement goes toward you being sentenced to prison rather than a few more hours in jail.
When and if you are arrested will vary based on:
- Whether you have an attorney,
- The facts of the case,
- What the allegations are, and
- How much evidence the state has against you.
Does Every Sex Crime Conviction In Minnesota Result In The Offender Or Convicted Having To Register As A Sex Offender For Life?
No, not every sex crime conviction in Minnesota will result in the offender having to be registered as a sex offender. A fifth degree case, for example, is a gross misdemeanor that doesn’t require registration as a sex offender.
All other sex crime offenses will result in the convicted having to register as a sex offender. In fact, there’s a lot of non-sex crimes where you will have to register. One example would be if you’re charged with kidnapping and assault, the kidnapping gets dismissed, and you’re convicted of assault. Kidnapping is one of the charges you have to register for even if the charge is dismissed.
A fifth degree assault, which is misdemeanor assault, could also lead to a registration as a sex offender. There are a whole myriad of other crimes that require registration and you don’t even have to be convicted of those crimes. You only have to be charged with them and then convicted of any offense out of that incident.
What Are Some Of The Most Common Reasons That You See False Sexual Assault Charges Or Allegations Are Made?
Some of the most common reasons that false sexual assault charges or allegations are made are…
- Revenge,
- Monetary reasons, and
- A difference of opinion.
The most prevalent reason would be that there’s simply a difference of opinion. The complainant and the accused can see the same facts in a totally different way. It’s almost worse than the political divide in our country right now, but when it comes to matters involving sexuality, different people have different views of what’s sexually inappropriate, harassment, or abusive.
An individual can absolutely believe they’re being falsely accused while the accuser can truly believe that they were sexually assaulted. No one is lying, but they have two honestly different views of what happened.
Social media dating platforms have perpetuated a lot of these situations. Basically, people go onto these platforms and say “I want to do this” and then someone will respond “Yes, I’ll do that”. Then, in the heat of the moment, they progress beyond what was discussed and very suddenly, they’re being investigated for a crime.
So, while it can shake out to being someone wanting revenge or even money, more often than not, it comes down to two people looking at the same facts very differently.
Is There A Statute Of Limitations In Minnesota On When A Sex Crime Charge Would Have To Be Made?
Yes, there is a statute of limitations. However, that statute can be tolled in a lot of situations. If, for some reason, the victim doesn’t understand that they were being sexually assaulted and they find out years later, that tolls the statue of limitations. Basically, the statute of limitations doesn’t start running until the victim because aware that they were sexually assaulted.
In a situation involving a child or even an adult who was drunk or passed out, the victim may not know that they were abused for 20, 30, or even 50 years. It makes the statute of limitations rather complicated when it doesn’t start until the victim becomes aware of the assault.
Due to this, you could be charged a very long time after the incident. We’re seeing this quite a bit more often now that older criminal sexual conduct charges are getting around the statute of limitations because, in Minnesota, it’s when the victim realizes that they were sexually assaulted.
With the guidance of a skilled attorney for Sex Crimes Law, you can have the peace of mind that comes with knowing that we’ll make it look easy. For more information on Sex Crimes Law in Minnesota, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (612) 338-5545 today.
