According to the news, a man was accused of forcing a woman to the ground and sitting on top of her. Two men apparently heard muffled screams and located the woman, which is when they alleged they saw the man sitting on her. The men then called police, who reported the woman's shirt looked disheveled and that her jeans were unbuttoned. They also noticed red marks on her neck. The woman claimed the defendant tackled her and choked her, which is when she lost consciousness. In Denver and Arapahoe County, the defendant could be charged with Criminal Attempt Sexual Assault and Third Degree Assault.

Sexual Assault Denver Attorney: Sexual Assault Charged After Causing Submission of Victim

Sexual Assault, C.R.S. 18-3-402, is defined in multiple ways in Denver and Adams County. As it applies to the news story, however, Sexual Assault can be charged after someone knowingly inflicts sexual intrusion or sexual penetration on a victim and the actor “causes submission of the victim by means of sufficient consequence reasonably calculated to cause submission against the victim's will”, C.R.S. 18-3-402(1)(a).

[pullquote align=”center” textalign=”center” width=”80%”]If you've been accused of Criminal Attempt Sexual Assault, contact one of our sex crimes defense attorneys today![/pullquote]

Criminal Attempt Sex Assault Jefferson County Lawyer: What is Criminal Attempt?

One way Criminal Attempt Sexual Assault, C.R.S. 18-2-101, is charged in Denver and Jefferson County is if:

“acting with the kind of culpability otherwise required for commission of an offense, someone engages in conduct constituting a substantial step toward the commission of the offense.”

If the man did choke the woman, cause her to go unconscious and intend to inflict sexual intrusion or sexual penetration on her, he could be charged with Criminal Attempt for attempting to commit Sexual Assault, C.R.S. 18-3-402(1)(a). Because of what the men in the news story reported seeing of the woman and the way the woman looked when police found her, Jefferson County prosecutors might argue the defendant took a substantial step toward committing Sexual Assault.

Criminal Attempt Sexual Assault in Pitkin County: Substantial Step Must Be Proven for a Conviction

In Criminal Attempt cases in Pitkin or Gilpin County, the substantial step must be proven for a conviction, which includes any “conduct, whether act, omission or possession, which is strongly corroborative of the firmness of the actor's purpose to complete the commission of the offense.” Criminal Attempt is punished differently depending on the level of felony or misdemeanor of the crime a person attempted to commit. Criminal Attempt to commit Sexual Assault by causing submission of the victim through application of physical force or violence is a class 4 felony.

If you or a loved one has been arrested, charged or accused of Criminal Attempt Sexual Assault in Denver or anywhere else in Colorado, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best Denver sex crimes criminal defense attorneys at the O'Malley Law Office at 303-830-0880, or submit the “Get Help Now” form. Together, we can protect your future.

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