This is a good question because if you fight a sex crime charge and lose a lot of times, the punishment is much worse than if you had just worked out a deal with the prosecutor through your attorney.

So, you have to know when to fight them and when to resolve them.  Of course, the short answer about when you should fight a sex crime case is if you can win.

That's not that easy of an assessment to make.  You're going to need an attorney for that. You're going to need somebody who has the experience and has fought the type of case you have in court and won, and someone you trust and who you feel comfortable with.

That's why I invite people to come in and sit down with me and give me the information so you can assess what you want to do with your particular case. Anything you say is protected by the attorney/client privilege when you meet with me, even if you don't hire me.

That's just the way things work in criminal defense, and it gives you an incentive to talk to an attorney so that you can assess what you want to do. Our California sex crime defense lawyers will review below.

Common California Sex Crime Charges

Penal Code 236.1 PC – Human Trafficking,

Penal Code 243.4 PC – Sexual Battery,

Penal Code 220 PC – Assault with Intent to Commit a Felony,

Penal Code 261 PC – Rape,

Penal Code 261.5 PC – Statutory Rape,

Penal Code 266h PC – Pimping,

Penal Code 266i PC – Pandering,

Penal Code 269 PC – Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child,

Penal Code 272 PC – Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor,

Penal Code 286(b) PC – Sodomy with a Minor,

Penal Code 288 PC – Lewd Acts with a Minor,

Penal Code 288a PC – Oral Copulation of a Minor,

Penal Code 288.2 PC – Sending Harmful Matter to Seduce Minor,

Penal Code 288.3 PC – Contacting a Minor to Commit a Felony,

Penal Code 288.4 PC – Arranging a Meeting with a Child for Lewd Purposes,

Penal Code 288.5 PC – Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child,

Penal Code 289 PC – Forcible Sexual Penetration with a Foreign Object,

Penal Code 290 PC – Sex Offender Registration,

Penal Code 311.11(a) PC – Possession of Child Pornography,

Penal Code 314 PC – Indecent Exposure,

Penal Code 647(a) PC – Lewd Conduct in Public,

Penal Code 647(b) PC – Solicitation of Prostitution,

Penal Code 647.6 PC – Annoying or Molesting a Child,

Penal Code 647(J)(4) PC – Revenge Porn,

Penal Code 653.22 PC – Loitering for Prostitution,

Penal Code 653.23 PC – Supervising or aiding prostitution.

Review of the Sex Crime Evidence

For a little bit more detailed answer about when you should fight a case, you really have to break se down specifically.  In other words, let's see what the evidence is against you.

Then you will have to grab the jury instructions related to the charges you're facing.  Those jury instructions have elements that the prosecution must prove.

So, what you're doing is basically matching up the evidence that the prosecutors are going to put forth, and you should be able to figure that out by looking at the police report, knowing what the allegations are against you, and then comparing it to the law, and that's found in the jury instructions.

Now, this starts to get complicated because what ends up happening is some of the facts are going to be disputed.  In other words, let's say an alleged victim is going to say you to X, Y and Z.

You're going to say, no, I didn't do that.  Now, you have to split that down and say, can the prosecutors prove that you did that. Who's going to be more believable, you or them.  Are there any witnesses on their side?  Are there any witnesses on your side?  Is there any expert evidence, like DNA, for example.

Highly Experienced Sex Crime Defense

So, it does start to get a little complicated, but that's why you get somebody like me who's been doing this for 30 years, handled thousands of sex crime cases and is probably familiar with the judge and prosecutor that you're going to be dealing with.

So, pick up the phone.  Make the call.  Ask for a meeting with Ron Hedding.  We will decide together whether you should fight your case or not.

Ultimately, it's your decision, but you should make that decision with counsel from your attorney.  So, pick up the phone.  Make the call.  Put my 39 years of experience to work for you.

I've worked for the District Attorney's office. I've worked for a Superior Court judge, and I've been defending people just like you at the defense level since 1994.

Hedding Law Firm is located in Los Angeles County and serves people charged with sexual-related offenses throughout Southern California, including Orange County, Ventura County, Riverside, and San Bernardino. We offer a free case evaluation.