Georgia Rape Defense Attorney - Frequently Asked Questions
What is sexual battery and when does it become aggravated sexual battery according to Georgia law?
Sexual battery occurs when a person touches another person's intimate areas without consent. Unwanted groping would fall under this category. Aggravated sexual battery occurs when a person penetrates another person with a foreign object, without consent. (Non-consensual penetration with a sexual organ would fall under the category of rape or aggravated sodomy.)
Sexual Battery
According to Georgia law (O.C.G.A. 16-6-22.1), a person has committed the offense of sexual battery when he or she “intentionally makes physical contact with the intimate parts of the body of another person without the consent of the person.”
The statute defines “intimate parts” to mean “the primary genital area, anus, groin, inner thighs, or buttocks of a male or female and the breasts of a female.”
Sexual battery is punished as a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature if it is a first offense and the victim was at least 16 years of age. A second or subsequent conviction, or a conviction for sexual battery against a minor under 16, is punished as a felony and carries a term of one to five years in prison.
To prove sexual battery, it must be shown that the touching was intentional, physical contact was made with an intimate part, and no consent was given by the alleged victim.
Aggravated Sexual Battery
Aggravated sexual battery (O.C.G.A. 16-6-22.2) is considered an even more serious crime. It is defined as occurring when a person “intentionally penetrates with a foreign object the sexual organ or anus of another person without the consent of that person.”
The law defines “foreign object” as “any article or instrument other than the sexual organ of a person.”
A conviction for aggravated sexual battery is punished with a prison term of 25 years to life in prison. If released from prison, the offender will be on probation for life and must register as a sex offender.
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To speak with an experienced Georgia Rape Defense Attorney, just complete the form to the right or call The Berry Law Group right now at (404) 816-4440.