A Middlesex Judicial District jury acquitted our client of 10 counts of child sexual assault on Tuesday, May 24, 2022. The jury reached their verdict after five days of trial and approximately nine hours of deliberation.

This client was acquitted of 10 felony counts of sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor stemming from a 2019 arrest.

“[My client] maintained his innocence from day one and we are extremely pleased that justice prevailed in this case” said Attorney Douglas Rudolph, who led the defense team.

“This was a nine-minute investigation,” Attorney Rudolph told the jury in his closing argument, referencing the recorded interview between State Police and the accused — only 9 minutes into the discussion of the allegations, the detectives told him they knew he was guilty of the allegations. “The police started with a conclusion, and they have been working their way backwards ever since.”

The defense highlighted the hasty investigation and the egregious lack of investigative follow up on behalf of the State Police Central District Major Crimes Squad. Various contradictory or downright confusing details from the accusations were taken at face value, without any corroboration or fact-checking by police, despite ample opportunity to do so. For example, at various times throughout the investigation and trial, the abuse was alleged to have begun in either 2007, 2008, or 2009. Despite the allegations that the abuse began when the complainant’s father was incarcerated, the police never looked up his incarceration history. At every point along the way, [the client] adamantly denied the allegations. But the police had already decided after nine minutes of speaking with him. This was a rush to judgement by police and in this case, justice prevailed.

It’s been said that it takes a village to raise a child. When it comes to juvenile crimes in Connecticut, that village can also contribute to a whole set of risk factors to a child’s choices to participate in criminal behavior.

So, though writing off juvenile crime as youthful indiscretions are quite tempting, understand things are much more complicated than that.

Decades of research have identified a number of consistent risk factors contributing to some of the most common juvenile crimes in Connecticut. Let’s take a closer look…

Is Your Child Considered “At Risk” in Connecticut?

According to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service, there are handfuls of risk factors for committing juvenile crimes that can be identified as young as six years old. They generally fall under one of five main categories: Individual, Family, School, Peer, and Community.

Individual Risk Factors

For young children, ages six to 11, individual risk factors can be innate — as simple as being male, hyperactivity, dishonesty, and aggression. Later, between 12 and 14, they include factors such as physical violence, substance use, and antisocial behavior.

Family Risk Factors

Among young children, family risk factors can include poor parent-child relationships, neglect, abuse, and separation from parents. As children get older these risk factors can include low parental involvement, poverty, and both discipline that is too harsh or too lax.

School Risk Factors

For young children, a poor attitude about school can be a warning sign while in older kids academic failure is a factor that can influence juvenile crimes

Peer Group Risk Factors

Young children with little to no social ties tend to perpetrate juvenile crimes while older children that are members of a gang or have peers with antisocial tendencies tend to be at risk

Community Risk Factors

Children, no matter age, are at higher risk if they live in a neighborhood that is rife with drugs and crime or if their neighborhood is highly disorganized.

Common Juvenile Crimes in Connecticut

When risk factors come together and a juvenile becomes caught up in the Connecticut juvenile criminal justice system, it is most often for these three offenses:

Possession of Drugs

This is one of the most common juvenile crimes because when juveniles are searched as a group and just one has drugs, often all people in the group are charged with possession. However, to be convicted of possession, the defendant has to be shown to have known the character of the controlled substance, knew the presence of it and had control over it.

Assault

Assault can be anything from threatening school mates to physically beating up another person. The severity of the crime has a bearing on how it is charged. The most common types of assault charged to juveniles in Connecticut include:

• Assault in the first degree – This is a Class B felony. A person is guilty of this felony when there was intent to do cause serious physical harm to another person and can involve a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon. They can also be charged with this felony if there was intent to disfigure the person or cause permanent damage.
• Assault in the second degree – To be found guilty of assault in the second degree, a Class D felony, the defendant must have intended to inflict serious damage to another, cause damage to another with the use of a deadly weapon, or recklessly cause serious physical damage to another utilizing a deadly weapon or other dangerous instruments.
• Assault in the second degree with a firearm – This is a Class D felony. A person is found guilty of this felony when they commit assault in the second degree and threaten or display a firearm during the assault.

Sex Crimes

Juveniles are also commonly charged with sex crimes such as:

• Sexual assault in the First Degree – This can be a Class A or Class B felony. If they compel another to engage in sexual intercourse with them by use of force or threat of force that causes a reasonable person to fear physical injury. It also applies if the person they engaged in intercourse with was under the age of 13 and the person being charged is more than two years older than they are.
• Sexual assault in the Second Degree – This is a Class B or Class C felony. They are guilty of this degree of sexual assault if they engage in sexual intercourse with another person and the person is 13 years of age but under 16 and the defendant is two years or more older, the victim was not able to consent due to mental defect, or the victim was physically helpless.

Juveniles facing charges need proper representation by an experienced Connecticut criminal attorney in order to have the best chance at getting their charges dropped, dismissed, or reduced.

Being convicted of any crime is, in its own right, something that is bound to follow you long after you’ve done your time. That being said, research suggests there are certain convictions that seem to be viewed far more negatively in society…and for much longer.

Sex crimes are among the worst. This is because while, yes, there are legal penalties attached to sex crime convictions, there are also significant social penalties.

The unique and unparalleled stigma surrounding sex crime convictions can be likened to suffering an entirely new set of repercussions after an offender’s criminal sentence is already complete.

First, let’s cover what the law says about sex crimes in Connecticut. Then, let’s take a look at what happens beyond criminal conviction and sentencing.

Connecticut Sex Crime Laws and Penalties

There are a wide variety of crimes that fall under the sex crime label. In general, sex crimes are any crime that involves unwanted sexual contact. Connecticut’s sex crime laws cover a range of illegal activities from verbal harassment to rape to trafficking.

Sexual Harassment and Stalking

Verbal sexual harassment becomes a crime when intent to make the victim annoyed, alarmed, or otherwise feel harassed exists. This behavior can easily be elevated to charges of stalking.

Traveling places or otherwise tracking a victim, or even providing unwanted gifts, can be considered stalking. Any situation where a reasonable person might fear for their safety or suffer emotional distress may be considered a crime.

First-time offenders may be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, but beyond a first offense, you’re subject to felony charges.

Non-violent Sexual Assault

Actual physical contact leads to sexual assault charges. The most basic nonviolent sexual assault is considered fourth-degree assault, a Class A misdemeanor in most circumstances.

This crime is defined as making sexual contact with someone without their consent. The punishment for this crime is up to $2,000 in fines and a year in jail. It is also one of the most common reasons offenders wind up on the Connecticut sex offender registry.

Sexually Violent Crimes

Sexually violent crimes are the next step up and often require mandatory lifetime registration with the Connecticut sex offender registry.

A third-degree sexual assault, for example, involves a firearm and becomes a Class C felony.

Another Class C felony sex crime? Second-degree sexual assault. This involves sexual intercourse where one person is in a position of power over the other.

Think high-profile cases where a teacher became sexually involved with a student, or a therapist wound up in a sexual relationship with a client. These crimes can result in up to ten years in jail and $10,000 in fines, as well as lifetime inclusion on the sex offender registry.

The list goes on and the maximum penalties only increase, but in most cases beyond these examples, besides decades behind bars and tens of thousands owed in fines?

You’re looking at life on Connecticut’s sex offender registry, and that means more than you might think…

You’re More Than Just a Felon After a CT Sex Crime Conviction

You’re a registered offender — depending upon the nature of the conviction, that is. Listen — fines can be paid, and sentences served, but when you are required to register, Connecticut’s sex offender registry can wind up being the most permanent part of your sex crime conviction.

In fact, many offenders are required to remain listed for life. That equates to a loss of privacy that goes unmatched. Your address must be placed online, where anyone can search for it. Your name is listed on public databases, and you are required to disclose your presence to your neighbors.

So let’s talk stigma.

Labeling Theory

As you would imagine, most folks are deeply biased against convicted sex offenders without ever even wanting to know an offender’s side of the story.

According to a 2014 published report covering “Labeling Theory,” the sex offender label prescribed by a registry marks an “individual as criminal, inferior, immoral, and evil” and that they are subsequently “separated from society and stigmatized.”

The study goes on to explain that “stigmatization results in the subsequent transformation of social status to one that is below the rest of society [and] this status change is often permanent and leads to the notion that the deviant subject is an outsider.”

Probably not what you were expecting after your release.

How This Stigma Can Affect Your Life Outside of Prison

It’s an understatement to say it — you’re unlikely to receive a warm reception from anyone who knows your history.

Being on the Connecticut sex offender registry affects where you can live and what jobs you can do. In fact, landlords are well within their rights to refuse housing to you based on your conviction status.

Ultimately, fighting sex crime charges from the start is your best chance of avoiding these consequences. A knowledgeable Connecticut criminal lawyer will help you fight to protest your innocence. Avoiding the harshest of penalties, social and criminal, is always worth the fight.

Being convicted of a sex crime in Connecticut is already difficult enough — especially when facing friends and family. As a part of your sentence, you may have even been required to register as a sex offender.

There are a wide variety of acts that can land you on the CT sex offender registry, and those crimes are grouped into three main categories: sexual violence, sex crimes involving minors, and non-violent offenses.

Let’s take a look at some of the most common convictions that carry the requirement to register as a sex offender. If you still have questions about your specific case afterward — don’t hesitate to reach out to an experienced Connecticut criminal defense attorney.

Sexually Violent Offenses

Any time a court deems a sex crime as violent, there will be a requirement to register as a sex offender with the state of Connecticut. Most often they are categorized as “sexual assault.”

Some of those include first-degree sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, second-degree sexual assault, and sexual assault against a spouse. Third-degree sexual assault, with and without a firearm, also qualifies as a sexually violent offense.

Generally speaking, sexual assault and other violent sex crimes require you to register for at least ten years on a first conviction. Plan on a lifetime registry if this isn’t your first time being convicted.

Sexual Acts With a Minor

This category covers the broadest scope of sex crimes — everything from incest to child porn. Convictions are sometimes even secured without an offender ever even having contact with an actual child. Here are a few examples:

• First-degree sexual assault of a minor (in this case, 13 years of age or younger) by someone two years older or more requires automatic lifetime registration on the offender registry.
• Second-degree sexual assault can land someone on the list, usually for no more than 10 years.
• Third-degree sexual assault charges requiring registration (length of time depends on other factors in your case) can accompany sex acts with a family member (incest).

Promoting prostitution with a minor is another qualifying crime. Additionally, possessing child pornography, enticing a minor through a computer, or employing a minor in an obscene performance will also put a perpetrator’s name on the registry for ten years.

Non-Violent Sex Crimes in Connecticut

These offenses also generally carry a 10-year sentence to the registry for an initial offense, with a lifetime sentence being given for second offenses.

Voyeurism

Voyeurism occurs when a person maliciously films, photographs, or otherwise records a person, without their permission, in a situation where the victim would expect privacy (e.g. a bathroom, a hotel room when they’re alone, etc.).

When the act is committed for the purpose of sexual gratification, it is a felony in Connecticut. The court does have discretion in regard to whether you will be required to register as a sex offender in this state.

Fourth-Degree Sexual Assault

Other forms of sexual assault include fourth-degree sexual assault. This entails repeatedly subjecting someone to sexual contact without their consent and can include what some perceive as victimless crimes like flashing.

Sex Offender Registration Can Negatively Impact Your Life

Landing on the sex offender registry can seriously impact your life. Offenders must register their names, upload a photo of themselves, and provide personal contact information (including a physical address) with the registry.

This registry is then available to the public to search, which means friends, neighbors, and employers would be able to find anyone registered on the list – including you.

Your best chance to avoid any impact at all is to work with an experienced Connecticut sex crime defense attorney before a judgment has been made on your case.

Once a sentence has been handed down, however, skip this step and face even graver consequences. Failure to register, or to even update information in a timely manner, is an additional felony and can result in a five-year prison sentence.