Sex Crimes Defense Lawyer in Edison, NJ
When you’re charged with a sex crime, such as sexual assault or criminal sexual contact, you face not only the risk of serious legal consequences but permanent damage to your reputation, including potential sex offender registration. You can lose your most important personal relationships, career, and freedom.
If you’ve been charged with a sex crime in Edison, New Jersey, you need the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney with a winning track record against these types of charges. You need a criminal defense attorney who has your back.
Edison sex crime defense law firm William Proetta Criminal Law has successfully resolved thousands of criminal cases in New Jersey. Our attorneys have extensive experience defending against sex crime charges of all kinds. We are ready to put our experience and resources to work defending you against sex crime charges in Edison or elsewhere in Middlesex County.
Contact William Proetta Criminal Law today for a free and confidential review of the charges against you and an explanation of your best legal options for fighting them.
Why You Need Our Sex Crime Defense Attorneys in Edison
Anytime you’re facing serious criminal charges, you need the best criminal defense lawyer you can get. That is especially true of sex crime charges, which can have consequences that can last the rest of your life.
Here are some of the ways our Edison sex crime defense attorneys can assist you:
- We can explain your legal rights.
- We can determine the best strategy for your defense.
- We can interview witnesses and uncover all available evidence in your favor.
- We can review law enforcement’s actions to determine whether police misconduct occurred during the investigation and arrest.
- We can stand up for your rights in negotiations with prosecutors and at trial in court.
- We can argue that the charges against you should be reduced or dismissed altogether.
A dismissal or an acquittal is always the best result, but reduced charges can still protect you from some of the worst consequences of a sex crime charge.
Types of Edison Sex Crime Charges Our Attorneys Defend Against
Sex crime charges we defend against in Edison, New Jersey, include:
- Criminal sexual contact
- Child pornography
- Endangering the welfare of a child by exposing them to sexual activity
- Sexual assault
- Statutory rape or sexual contact with a minor
- Lewdness
- Indecent exposure
- Prostitution or sex work
- Sex trafficking
- Revenge porn or distributing explicit images of a person without that person’s permission
- Failure to register as a sex offender when required to do so
Potential Penalties for Conviction on Sex Crime Charges
The severity of the charges against you depends on several factors, including:
- Your accuser’s age
- Your relationship with your accuser
- The level of violence you’re accused of
Sex crimes in Edison can result in significant penalties upon conviction. Punishments vary based on the type and degree of the offense. For example:
- First-degree sex crimes are generally punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, though the penalty could be higher when the victim is less than 13 years old. Aggravated sexual assault is a common type of first-degree sex crime in New Jersey.
- Second-degree sex crimes, such as sexual assault, can result in a maximum sentence of 10 years behind bars.
- Third-degree sex crimes, such as criminal sexual contact, carry a potential sentence of up to five years behind bars.
- Fourth-degree sex crimes are punishable by incarceration for up to 18 months.
- Disorderly persons offenses like certain lewd acts can be punished by a maximum sentence of six months in jail.
Anyone convicted of aggravated criminal sexual contact, criminal sexual contact with a minor, sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a child through pornography featuring a child and associated acts, promoting child prostitution, false imprisonment of a minor who is not the actor’s child, luring, enticing, or kidnapping must register as a sex offender.
Conviction on sex crime charges can destroy the most critical relationships in your life. Conviction can also ruin your career, resulting in lost jobs, loss of your professional licenses, and other consequences.
Possible Defense Strategies in Sex Crime Cases
In Edison sex crime cases, possible defense strategies depend on the specifics of your case. Some examples of common defenses in sex crime cases include:
- Consent to the sexual conduct
- Mistaken identity
- False accusation
- Police misconduct and other violations of your constitutional rights
- Unreliable DNA or other physical evidence
- Inability to prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt
Our Edison defense attorneys are ready to review the charges against you and the specific circumstances of your situation to determine your best legal strategy for fighting the charges. You need a strong criminal defense lawyer to protect your good name and create a defense strategy that can give you a result that avoids fines, prison time, and registration as a sex offender.
How Our Edison Sex Crime Defense Lawyer Can Help You
Our lawyers for sex crime charges in Edison have several different potential defenses we can use depending on the circumstances of your case, including these examples:
- Presenting evidence that the accusations against you are false.
- Arguing that any sexual contact between you and your accuser was consensual. Note that this defense is not available if your accuser is a minor.
- Arguing that any evidence against you is insufficient to overcome reasonable doubt, the standard needed for a criminal conviction.
- Arguing that the court should suppress evidence or dismiss the case due to police misconduct or because the evidence was obtained through a violation of your constitutional rights.
William Proetta Criminal Law is an experienced and dedicated sexual crimes defense law firm serving Edison, New Jersey. If you hire us to defend you against these charges, we won’t pass you off to a junior attorney or another staff member. You’ll get the personalized, skilled attention you need to fight these charges and seek the best outcome possible in your case.
Are you not sure what the charges mean or what your options are? We offer a free case evaluation so you can get our honest opinion about the charges, your chances of beating them, and your best course of action. The consultation is entirely confidential and comes without further obligations on your part.
Sex crime charges can damage your reputation and cause lifelong consequences that go far beyond the official punishment for the crime. Take these charges seriously and get help from our determined and experienced criminal defense attorneys.
Contact William Proetta Criminal Law today for a free consultation.