Date rape is an antiquated term that isn’t used in a legal context in Michigan. Colloquially, this act generally consists of drugging someone to engage in non-consensual sexual activity with the incapacitated individual. Any crime involving sexual assault is governed by the state’s criminal sexual conduct laws.
In a date rape scenario, mental incapacitation renders a victim too confused, unconscious, or unable to consent to sexual activity. It may or may not render the victim unable to utter the word “no,” but if they cannot consent affirmatively either (in a legal sense), whether they protest or not is irrelevant to the underlying reality that they are incapable of consenting to sexual activity. If mental incapacity is a factor in a sexual assault scenario, this will serve as an aggravating factor in filing charges against the accused.
Michigan Date Rape Lawyer
Your freedom, livelihood, family, career, and reputation hang in the balance when facing sex crime charges. Don’t gamble with your future but instead, hire a competent date rape lawyer in Michigan such as J. Dallo at Dallo Law, P.C.. Attorney Dallo is Michigan’s go-to criminal defense attorney. He has a proven track record of winning sex crime cases and can offer aggressive legal representation.
Reach out to Dallo Law, P.C. at (248) 283-7000 to schedule your first consultation. Our firm accepts clients throughout the greater Oakland County and Macomb County area including Pontiac, Troy, Waterford Township, Oakland Charter Township, Royal Oak, Clarkston, Southfield, and Bloomfield Hills.
Information Center
- Classification Of Date Rape Crimes
- Penalties for Date Rape in Michigan
- Statute Of Limitations
- Defenses for Date Rape in Michigan
- Additional Resources
Classification Of Date Rape Crimes
Under Michigan law, date rape can be classified in several ways, depending on the circumstances present in any given case.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The First Degree
This crime occurs when an offender engages in sexual penetration with someone, and a qualifying aggravating factor is present. Some of the many qualifying aggravating factors include:
- A victim who is under the age of 13
- An offender who is in a position of authority over the victim and uses this authority to get the victim’s submission to the activity
- Penetration occurs while any other felony is being committed
- The offender is aided or abetted by at least one other person, and they either know or have reason to know that the victim is mentally incapacitated or physically helpless, or force or coercion are used to accomplish penetration
- The offender is armed with a weapon or an item that leads the victim to reasonably believe it is a weapon
- The offender causes personal injury to the victim and force or coercion is used to accomplish penetration, and the offender knows (or has reason to know) that the victim is mentally incapacitated or physically helpless
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Second Degree
Occurs when circumstances that would be classified as criminal sexual conduct in the first degree involve sexual contact but stop short of penetration.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Third Degree
Occurs when an offender engages in sexual penetration under qualifying circumstances. Notable qualifying circumstances involve offenders in a position of authority when the victim is 13, 14, or 15 years old, force or coercion is used to accomplish penetration, and the actor either knows or has reason to know that the victim is mentally incapacitated or physically helpless.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Fourth Degree
Occurs when an offender engages in sexual contact with someone, and a qualifying aggravating circumstance exists. Notable qualifying circumstances include:
- The age of the victim is 13, 14, or 15, and the offender is at least five years older than the victim
- Force or coercion is used to accomplish the sexual contact
- The offender knows or has reason to know that the victim is mentally incapacitated or physically helpless
Penalties for Date Rape in Michigan
The punishment for a date rape offense is defined by how the offense is classified.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The First Degree: Punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment or for any term of years.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Second Degree: Punishable by imprisonment not to exceed 15 years.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Third Degree: Punishable by imprisonment not to exceed 15 years.
Criminal Sexual Conduct In The Fourth Degree: Punishable by imprisonment not to exceed two years, a fine of not more than $500, or both.
Statute Of Limitations
The state’s statute of limitations restricts the time that cases can be filed against an alleged offender. Michigan law honors the reality that it may take victims of sexual assault a significant amount of time before they’re ready to come forward. As a result, the state recently expanded its statute of limitations for sexual assault crimes.
In both criminal and civil contexts, victims under 18 at the time of the assault may seek justice for 15 years after the event or at any time before the individual’s 28th birthday, whichever date is later. Adult victims of assault may seek justice for ten years after an event has occurred, provided that the assault is classified as criminal sexual conduct of the second, third, or fourth degree.
In cases of first-degree criminal sexual assault (of a victim of any age), no criminal statute of limitations applies. A prosecutor may file a case under this classification at any time.
Defenses for Date Rape in Michigan
Most defense strategies employed in date rape cases primarily concern issues of identity and consent. If a victim is too intoxicated to consent or has been involuntarily impaired, they may have difficulty identifying the individual who violated them. This scenario may lead to cases of mistaken identity. If a criminal defense attorney can help to identify the perpetrator correctly or show why the accused was not the offender, the charges against the accused should be dropped.
Additionally, there may be a reason to suspect that the victim had consented to the sexual contact in question and that they denied consent only after the fact. This may be a more complex strategy to prove. Still, if witnesses are willing to testify to the sound mind of the victim, it is a potentially winning defensive strategy worthy of consideration.
Additional Resources
Michigan Sex Offender Registry | Michigan State Police – Visit the official State of Michigan website to learn more about how the Michigan Sex Offender Registration Program operates and to view answers to FAQs about the Registry itself.
Reentry Services | Michigan Department of Corrections – Visit the official State of Michigan website to learn about services available to criminal offenders who have served their time and are ready to reenter broader society.
Bloomfield Hills Date Rape Attorney | Oakland County, MI
Have you been arrested for date rape in Michigan? If so, it’s within your best interest to hire an attorney with an extensive background in sex crimes such as J. Dallo at Dallo Law, P.C.. Attorney Dallo and his legal team will do whatever possible to reduce or dismiss your charges.
Call us now at (561) 557-8686 to set up your first consultation free. Dallo Law, P.C. can sit with you and start building a defense structure for your case there and then.
Dallo Law, P.C. has offices located in Bloomfield Hills, and accepts clients throughout the greater Oakland County and Macomb County area.