New Law Enforces Mandatory Prison Sentences for Certain Sex Crimes

Around this time last year, the nation’s news outlets were abuzz as they followed a high-profile case of a Stanford student charged with the campus sexual assault of an unconscious 23-year-old woman. The student was found guilty, but in a decision that stunned the country, a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge sentenced him to a mere six months in jail and three years of probation. While he will be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, the young man only served three months of his six-month sentence before being released last September.

Many around the country believe that the sentencing was seriously mishandled, and the attention garnered by the case prompted California lawmakers to take action. As of January 1, 2017, a new law has gone into effect which enforces minimum sentences for certain sex crimes in the state.

Increasing Minimum Sentences

California Assemblyman Bill Dodd, D-Napa, coauthored the legislation with the goal of taking a stand against sexual violence. “If we let a rapist off with probation and little jail time,” Dodd said, “we re-victimize the victim, we dissuade other victims from coming forward, and we send a message that sexual assault of an incapacitated victim is just no big deal.” Dodd’s bill was passed by the State Assembly and was signed by Governor Jerry Brown on September 30, 2016, just weeks after the young man left prison.

The new law makes sexual assault of an unconscious or severely intoxicated person ineligible for probation. For a number of years, rape accompanied by violence or physical force carried a mandatory prison sentence in California, and now, the same provisions must be applied in cases where the victim was unconscious or incapable consent due to intoxication.

Concerns Over Mandatory Sentences

While the judge in the nationally-publicized case is known locally as a thoughtful jurist whose approach to sentencing is often the lenient side, there is worry that implementing mandatory sentencing may take away judicial independence. The controversial ruling was affected, in part, by the aggressive defense which the defendant’s family could afford—hardly the situation for many criminal defendants. Skeptics point out that the nation’s court systems have a long history of disproportionate punishing defendants without the means to pay for a comprehensive defense and people of color, in particular. The new law is raising concerns that mandatory prison sentences could allow such trends to continue virtually unabated.

Charged With a Sex Crime?

If you are facing charges of sexual assault or any other type of sex crime, it is important to seek legal help immediately. Contact an experienced San Jose criminal defense attorney to discuss your case and explore your available options. Call 408-277-0377 for a confidential consultation with Wesley J. Schroeder, Attorney at Law, today.

Sources:

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-sac-stanford-rape-prison-sentences-20160806-snap-story.html

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB2888

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/how-californias-new-rape-law-could-be-a-step-backward-w437373