Oklahoma sex crime defense attorneys provide legal representation to individuals charged with sex-related crimes such as rape, sexual assault, child pornography, soliciting a minor, lewd or indecent acts, sodomy, prostitution, and indecent exposure. The criminal defense attorneys of Phillips & Associates in Oklahoma City are experts at fighting sex crime charges. Circumstances surrounding sex crime charges often lead to false accusations. These allegations do not always reflect the facts of the situation. Punishments for sex crimes in the state of Oklahoma include prison sentences, fines, and a requirement to register as a sex offender.
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At Phillips & Associates we provide criminal defense services to anyone charged with a sex crime in Oklahoma City and throughout the state of Oklahoma. If you or a loved one has been charged with a sex-related charge, contact one of our experienced attorneys for a free consultation.
Oklahoma Sex Crime Charges We Defend
Sex crime cases in Oklahoma involve allegations such as sexual assault, rape, sexual battery, child sexual abuse, or internet based sex offenses, and they carry severe legal and personal consequences. Phillips & Associates represents individuals accused of these crimes by examining evidence, challenging credibility, and protecting clients’ rights from the investigation phase through a criminal trial. Our attorneys defend agains allegations that arise from private complaints, institutional settings or businesses, or law enforcement investigations. The sex crime charges we defend are listed below.
- Computer/Internet Related
- Child Pornography Charges
- Charges of Soliciting Minors Online
- Sexting
- Child Molestation or Child Sexual Abuse
- Lewd or Indecent Acts with a Minor
- Lewd or Indecent Proposals to a Minor
- First Degree Rape and Rape by Instrumentation
- Date Rape and Spousal Rape
- Statutory Rape & Age of Consent
- Sodomy and Forcible Sodomy
- Indecent Exposure
- Prostitution and Solicitation of Prostitution
- Sexual Battery & Sexual Assault
- Juvenile Sex Offenses
- Federal Sex Offenses
Internet Sex Crimes
Internet sex crimes in Oklahoma involve allegations that a person used electronic communication or online platforms to commit or attempt sexual offenses such as solicitation of a minor, lewd proposals, and possession or distribution of child pornography. Cases involving internet sex crimes frequently arise from undercover investigations or digital evidence and are prosecuted aggressively due to the intent based nature of the conduct and the severe penalties involved. Phillips & Associates offers internet sex crime defense services to those facing allegations. Our attorneys challenge intent, digital evidence, and investigative tactics used by law enforcement.
Child Pornography
Child pornography charges in Oklahoma are based on allegations that someone knowingly possessed, viewed, or shared illegal images or videos involving minors. The pornographic material does not have to be physical. The materials move through computers, phones, cloud accounts, and online platforms. Child pornography cases usually begin with digital forensic work, file sharing investigations, or tips generated through internet monitoring and undercover operations. Phillips & Associates offers child pornography defense to individuals accused of these offenses by slowing the process down and examining what the evidence actually shows. Digital files do not explain themselves. The defense looks closely at whether possession was knowing, who had access to the device, and whether the material can be reliably attributed to a specific user. Searches, seizures, and forensic methods are scrutinized for constitutional flaws. Then intent of the accused is an important factor, as is showing they had control of the materials. When those elements are weak, the case is challenged.
Solicitation of a Minor
Solicitation of a minor is a sex crime that involves knowingly using technology to encourage, offer, or engage in sexual communication with a minor, or someone they believed to be a minor. Being charged with solicitation of a minor does not require physical contact with the child. It begins and often ends with communication such as messages, images, requests. The statute is broad by design and covers phones, computers, social media, email, text messages, apps, and online platforms of almost every kind. Phillips & Associates offers solicitation of a minor defense services that focuses on intent, context, belief about the recipient’s age, and whether the accused knowingly transmitted prohibited content. Jurisdiction, search methods, device access, and constitutional violations are closely examined. When intent, knowledge, or attribution cannot be clearly proven, the case is challenged aggressively.
Child Sexual Abuse or Molestation
Child sexual abuse is the willful or malicious sexual abuse of a child under eighteen years of age. Child sexual abuse is committed by a person responsible for the child’s health, safety, or welfare, and it includes acts commonly described as child molestation. Child sexual abuse includes acts like sexual intercourse, penetration, sodomy, and incest. Sexual abuse includes lewd acts or proposals such as sexual touching, exposing a child to sexual conduct or materials, or coercing a child for sexual gratification. Molestation represents a category of lewd acts within child sexual abuse rather than a separate concept. Consent has no legal effect because a child cannot consent under the statute. The law treats child sexual abuse as a serious felony due to abuse of authority, exploitation of vulnerability, and lasting physical and psychological harm.
Lewd or Indecent Acts with a Minor
Rape
Sodomy and Forcible Sodomy
Indecent Exposure
Prostitution and Solicitation of Prostitution
Sexual Battery
Sexual Assault
Juvenile Sex Crimes
Federal Sex Crimes
Sexual assaults can and do occur in the above situations. Prosecutors and victims' rights advocates work quickly to bring charges against the accused and to push for maximum sentencing in the interest of "public welfare."
In situations where a crime actually occurred, it is important that the charges do not exceed the offense. Even a seemingly consensual act of sex can be a crime if the "victim" is below the age of legal consent in Oklahoma (16). Even if a victim is aged 16 or older, there are specific situations in which he or she cannot legally consent to sex.
Read More: Oklahoma Age of Consent Laws
Other sex-related crimes are more sinister. Penalties can include life in prison. Crimes against children and violent or forcible rape are crimes which are subject to the most vigorous prosecution and harshest penalties. If you have been charged with first degree rape, lewd acts with a minor, or other serious crimes, you have likely been painted as a monster by your accuser, police, and prosecutors. At Phillips & Associates, we offer wise legal counsel to make the best of a difficult situation.
Oklahoma Sex Crime Defense Strategies
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to sex crime defense. The sex crime defense attorneys at Phillips & Associates use defense strategies including demonstrating consent of the "victim", lack of evidence, mistaken identity, reasonable doubt about the identity of the suspect, DNA testing, forensic and psychiatric evaluations, challenging the credibility of accusers, suppressing evidence, and false accusations. At Phillips & Associates, we have a record of successful outcomes in challenging sex crime cases.
The defense strategies used to fight sex crime charges in Oklahoma are listed below.
- Demonstrating consent of the "victim"
- Highlighting a lack of evidence to support the charge
- Presenting factual evidence of the defendant's innocence
- Proving mistaken identity
- Providing reasonable doubt of accurate identification of a suspect
- Polygraph testing
- DNA testing
- Evaluation by forensic psychiatrists or psychologists
- Challenging the credibility of accusers or witnesses
- Suppressing illegally obtained or irrelevant evidence
- Showing that the accuser's testimony may have been tainted by leading questions or inappropriate interview techniques
- Demonstrating motive for a false accusation, including child custody disputes, financial motivation, revenge, or regret or shame after consensual sex
The right defense strategies can let you walk out of a courtroom with your reputation restored and your head held high. Inadequate defense can mean years in prison, lifetime sex offender registration, and the destruction of your family.
Sources of False Sex Crime Accusations
False sex crime accusations are allegations of sexual misconduct that are untrue, exaggerated, or unsupported by facts, yet are reported to law enforcement as if a crime occurred. False sex crime accusations involve claims of sexual assault, rape, sexual battery, child sexual abuse, or internet based sex offenses, even though the alleged conduct did not happen as described or potentially did not happen at all.
The most common sources of false sex crime accusations are listed below.
- vindictive ex-partners
- someone whose romantic overtures were rebuffed
- a consensual encounter that one party now regrets
- spouses or ex-spouses looking to gain an advantage in a custody dispute
- stepchildren who are trying to get rid of a parent's new spouse
- students who are angry with their teachers
- a child in DHS custody who fabricate tales of abuse at the hands of case workers or guardians
- inmates who allege sexual abuse by police, jailers, or other Department of Corrections workers
You may be the victim of a false allegation. You may have made a serious mistake. You may struggle with an addiction you need help overcoming. Regardless of the circumstances that brought you to this terrible situation, the attorneys with Phillips & Associates are dedicated to providing the highest quality defense representation to each and every client.
What To Do When Charged With an Oklahoma Sex Crime
When charged with an Oklahoma sex crime it is important to invoke your right to remain silent. Do not say anything to investigators or police, and insist on having your attorney present during questioning. But don't just preserve your silence with law enforcement. It is critical that you speak with no one about your case. Do not attempt to "clear things up" with the victim. Do not try to explain your side of the story to your friends or family. Even people you think are on your side can be subpoenaed by prosecutors and forced to testify against you.
Often, you will not be read your Miranda rights until after an arrest, but you do have the right to remain silent even prior to an arrest. Police may not inform you of that right. They may tell you they "just have a few questions," and that you are not under arrest. If you are not being detained, you are free to go. Call an attorney at once.
Once you have been criminally charged, there are several defense options which may prove beneficial for your case. Your lawyer should carefully evaluate all circumstances of your arrest and the evidence against you to determine the best option for your defense. He should be willing to think creatively and to explore every avenue for a positive result.
What are Sex Crimes Charges in Oklahoma?
In Oklahoma, a person may be accused of a sex crime even if he or she never touches another person. The attempt to solicit sex or the exchange of graphic pictures can be enough to put a person in prison and land him or her on the Oklahoma Sex Offender Registry for life.
At Phillips & Associates, we handle every degree of state and federal sex offenses, and we have a strong record of successful outcomes in these types of cases. Our dismissals and acquittals have helped in making us one of the top criminal defense law firms in Oklahoma City.
For many people the greatest consequence of conviction is the social stigma that surrounds the offense. Accusation and conviction of a sex crime can devastate marriages, obliterate families, destroy personal relationships, and ruin careers. For those who are required to register as sex offenders, the punishment remains public, and it extends far beyond the completion of any jail or prison term.
Sex offender registration is not merely a state-level requirement for those convicted of sex crimes. It is a federal mandate under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. This act is intended "To protect children from sexual exploitation and violent crime, to prevent child abuse and child pornography, to promote Internet safety, and to honor the memory of Adam Walsh and other child crime victims." Title I of the act is the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, which outlines requirements for sex offender registration and delineates penalties for failure to comply.
Sex Offender Registration and notification is provided to the general public through the following links:
- The FBI Sex Offender Registry
http://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/registry/registry - The U.S. Department of Justice National Sex Offender Public Website -
http://www.nsopw.gov/en-US - The Oklahoma Sex Offender Registry
http://sors.doc.state.ok.us/svor/f?p=106:1:0
Sex Offender Representation in Oklahoma
Whether you are a sex offender or have been charged in a sex crime, turn to Phillips & Associates for their professionalism and success. We handle every case with discretion, and we treat every client with respect. We are dedicated to protecting the rights and liberties of criminal defendants in Oklahoma, and we are committed to providing the highest quality legal services and defense representation.
Your life is in upheaval. You don't know where to turn. You know that any small mistake can jeopardize your case. Do not try to handle this situation alone. You need an experienced defense attorney with a record of success in sex crime cases. Call today for no-risk, confidential evaluation of your case with an experienced criminal defense attorney.
