Columbus Gross Sexual Imposition Lawyers

What is gross sexual imposition?

Ohio defines the sex crime of gross sexual imposition as follows: “No person shall have sexual contact with another, not the spouse of the offender; cause another, not the spouse of the offender, to have sexual contact with the offender; or cause two or more other persons to have sexual contact when any of the following applies:”

• “The offender purposely compels the other person, or one of the other persons, to submit by force or threat of force.”
• The offender gave the other person drugs or alcohol in an attempt to prevent their ability to resist, “by administering any drug, intoxicant, or controlled substance to the other person surreptitiously or by force, threat of force, or deception.”
• The offender was significantly impaired by a drug, given to them for medical reasons.
• One or more of the victims was under 13 – “whether or not the offender knows the age of that person.”
• The other person could not resist or give consent because they were “substantially impaired because of a mental or physical condition or because of advanced age, and the offender knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the ability to resist or consent of the other person or of one of the other persons is substantially impaired because of a mental or physical condition or because of advanced age.”

Further:

No person shall knowingly touch the genitalia of another, when the touching is not through clothing, the other person is less than twelve years of age, whether or not the offender knows the age of that person, and the touching is done with an intent to abuse, humiliate, harass, degrade, or arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person.

The term “sexual contact” used in this statute is different than the term “sexual conduct” that is used for charges of rape and sexual battery.

Sexual contact means: “Any touching of an erogenous zone of another, including without limitation the thigh, genitals, buttock, pubic region, or, if the person is a female, a breast, for the purpose of sexually arousing or gratifying either person.”

Sexual conduct means: Vaginal intercourse between a male and female; anal intercourse, fellatio, and cunnilingus between persons regardless of sex; and, without privilege to do so, the insertion, however slight, of any part of the body or any instrument, apparatus, or other object into the vaginal or anal opening of another. Penetration, however slight, is sufficient to complete vaginal or anal intercourse.