What to Expect from Virginia Beach Sex Crimes Cases

Dealing with a sex crime case is scary and can lead to a large amount of jail time. Having the guidance of an experienced lawyer will help your benefit your case. Please contact a local Virginia Beach sex crimes lawyer if you have been charged a sex crime.

Arrest Process

After an individual is charged with a Virginia Beach sex crime, they are taken to jail, processed, taken before a magistrate to determine whether or not the bond is appropriate and, after that, they will then appear before a judge for their arraignment.

As soon as they are processed in the jail, they should contact a Virginia Beach sex crimes lawyer immediately. The police are talking to the person because they want information they can use to help prosecute that person and the person may unknowingly give them that information. If a person is speaking to a Virginia Beach sex crimes attorney, he or she may be able to avoid giving up damaging information that could possibly be used to convict them.

Important Factors to Know

A person does not have to speak to the police officer. However, a person should not, under any circumstances, talk to the complaining witness. He or she may think he or she can clear everything up, that it’s a misunderstanding but, more than likely, he or she is just going to make it worse.

Misdemeanor or Felony Offenses

Most of the sexual crimes in Virginia are listed as felonies. There are some misdemeanors but most of them are felonies and most of them will start out as felonies and then possibly be reduced as part of a plea agreement or due to the type of evidence presented.

Sex Crimes in Court

For felonies, they will start in front of a judge in the District Court at the preliminary hearing. For many serious crimes, they may go in front of a jury. There are positives and negatives for both sides as to putting them in front of a judge as opposed to a jury.

Without knowing who the victim is or who the complainant is and without knowing anything about the defendant, those are things that a Virginia Beach sex crimes lawyer will take into consideration when advising the client whether or not they should pursue a bench trial or a jury trial.

Constitutional Issues

One issue to expect in a Virginia Beach sex crimes case and investigation is searches and seizures. Since these often require DNA swabs or property that belongs to people who are accused of crimes, police have to show probable cause in order to get them.

Often, the police will try to get confessions from people to admit things. Even if they admit they had sex with the victim, they may not admit whether it was consensual or non-consensual, , that can be used to gain a conviction.

However, people do have rights against interrogation and the police have to show that they complied with the given Miranda warnings and afforded a person the right to counsel and show that the person waived their right to an attorney.

Contact a Virginia Beach Sex Crimes Lawyer

A sex crime charge is an extremely serious charge and if convicted it can result in a large amount of jail time. These are cases that contacting a Virginia Beach sex crimes attorney should be a priority to help you analyze and craft a case. Please contact a skilled attorney today.