Oral copulation occurs when you establish contact between your mouth and the genitals or anus of another person. It is a grave crime if the act is non-consensual and the perpetrator accomplishes it through fear or force. The prosecutor will also file serious criminal charges if you commit oral copulation on an unconscious, intoxicated, or any other person who cannot legally consent to a sexual act, like a minor.

Oral copulation by fear or force is a felony offense punishable by up to eight years in prison. It could also seriously affect various elements of your life, like your social and career lives. Thus, you must seek the assistance of a competent criminal defense attorney to understand and safeguard your rights and mount a solid defense against your charges.

We have the skills and experience you need to obtain a fair outcome for your case at California Criminal Lawyer Group. We can help you if you face oral copulation by fear or force charges in Fresno. Our aggressive criminal attorneys can use the best fighting strategies to compel the judge to dismiss or reduce the charges.

The Legal Definition of Oral Copulation By Fear/Force

The law prohibiting oral copulation by fear/force is under Penal Code 287. You commit this offense when you establish contact between your mouth and another person's anus or genitals, or your anus or genitals with someone else’s mouth, without the person's consent, and with fear or force. This law prohibits accomplishing oral copulation through violence, duress, threats, force, or fear of harm. You are also guilty under the law if you commit oral copulation against a person who cannot legally give consent, including a minor, intoxicated, unconscious, or mentally incapacitated person.

PC 287 provides a detailed meaning of this crime. It provides the elements or facts of the crime that the district attorney must prove for the court to find you guilty. These elements are:

  • You made contact between your mouth and another person's anus or sex organ or your anus or sexual organ with the other party’s mouth (this defines oral copulation)
  • You did so against the other party’s consent
  • You completed the act through duress, threats, violence, menace, force or fear of bodily harm

The prosecutor will also file charges under this statute if you commit oral copulation on the following people:

  • A highly intoxicated person who cannot consent to or resist the act
  • An unconscious party who does not understand the nature or consequences of the act
  • Any other person who cannot legally give consent, including a child or a person with a physical disability or mental disorder

You can violate this law in so many ways, including the following:

  • Threatening a person with a gun or knife unless they perform oral sex on you
  • Performing oral sex on a highly intoxicated person who has already passed out
  • Threatening to harm a woman’s baby if they refuse to engage in an oral sexual act with you

The elements of your offense, which the prosecutor must demonstrate during trial, will depend on the version of this law you violate. Here are these variations in more detail:

Oral Copulation By Fear or Force

This is the basic variation of this crime. Its elements include the following:

  • You orally copulated with another person
  • You completed the act against the other party’s consent
  • You used force, duress, violence, menace, or fear to accomplish the act

The act of oral copulation, as under PC 287, refers to physical contact between one person’s mouth and the anus or sexual organ of another person. The contact can be slight or significant and does not necessarily involve penetration. A human sexual organ, in this case, could mean the scrotum or penis of a man or the vagina of a woman.

Example: Sammy accosts a homeless girl in a dark alley on his way from a friend’s party. He threatens to kill the girl if she does not engage in an oral sexual act with him. The girl, too afraid for her life, obliges.

Sammy is guilty of oral penetration through threats and force, even though no actual sexual penetration occurs between his sexual organ and the girl's mouth.

The Consent

You need the other party’s consent to perform oral copulation on them. Without this consent, your actions will be criminal, and the prosecutor can file charges against you under this law. This offense is very similar to rape, where consent is a crucial element in demonstrating whether you are guilty of your charges.

To give consent, the other party must willingly and freely agree to the sexual act. They must also comprehend the physical nature of that act. The person can also withdraw their consent even after initially agreeing to oral copulation. If you force the person to orally copulate after they have withdrawn consent, you are guilty under PC 287.

Example: Beth and Anna have been planning to engage in consensual sex for a few weeks. They even meet at Anna’s apartment and start making out. But Anna withdraws consent during the act and asks Beth to leave. Beth is so furious. She wrestles Anna, overpowers her, and performs oral sex on her.

Even though Anna had initially agreed to engage in sex with her friend Beth, Beth is guilty under this law for continuing the sexual act even after Anna withdrew her consent.

The fact that two people have dated in the past or are currently in a dating relationship does not automatically mean that they consent to engage in sex with each other. One partner must seek the other’s consent each time they want to engage in a sexual act.

Also, the fact that you were married in the past does not mean that your ex-partner must consent to sex every time you want to engage in sex with them. You are guilty under this law if you forcefully engage in oral copulation with them against their consent.

If the victim does not consent to oral copulation or withdraws their consent in the middle of an act, asking you to wear a condom is not an indication that they agree to the act. You are still guilty unless they communicate consent.

However, if you reasonably believe that you had the victim’s consent to oral copulation and can demonstrate that belief in court, the judge could dismiss your charges.

Example: Rick and Sara have been married for almost eight years. Their sex life is still as great as it was when they were dating. Sometimes, Sara surprises her husband with oral sex in the middle of the night. She does not wake him first to obtain his consent.

As long as Rick does not object and does not say or do anything to suggest his disapproval of the sexual act, Sara is not guilty under PC 287. She reasonably believes that she has her husband’s consent to engage in an oral sexual act with him.

Through Fear/Force

Oral copulation is, in itself, legal. But if accomplished through fear/force, it becomes illegal. The fear/force element of this offense, as under PC 287, could mean the following:

  • Force
  • Violence
  • Duress
  • Menace
  • Threats of physical harm or bodily injury
  • Threats of retaliation

Any means you use to conquer the other party’s will falls under the general umbrella of ‘fear/force.’ A person using force or violence only needs to use enough to overcome their victim, not necessarily to hurt them.

Duress means using implied or direct threats of violence, force, hardship, danger, or retribution to compel others to submit to something they would not otherwise submit.

Menace means threatening statements or acts to imply your intent to hurt the other party.

You could also threaten to injure the victim or harm members of their immediate family, including their child or parent.

Oral Copulation On an Intoxicated Party

The prosecutor could also charge an intoxicated person with oral copulation. But the following facts must be true for the judge to pass a guilty verdict:

  • The other party had consumed too much liquor, drugs, or any other intoxicating substances to resist.
  • You knew or should reasonably have known the other person was too high to consent.

Obtaining a guilty verdict is a challenge for prosecutors in cases like these, considering that many people engage in sexual acts when they are drunk. But your charges will hold if the prosecutor can demonstrate that the other party could not understand the physical nature and weight of that sexual act because they were too intoxicated. According to the law, a person who does not understand the nature and weight of a sexual act is incapable of giving consent. They cannot understand the moral character of the sexual act and its possible consequences. Performing a sexual act on such a person will result in grave sex-related charges.

Example: Susan has had a crush on Seth for some time now. One weekend, she throws a party at her home when her parents are on a business trip. She invites everyone in her class, including Seth. The youngsters at the party bring all kinds of alcoholic drinks. After too much drinking, Seth wanders off to one of the bedrooms in Susan’s house and sleeps. Finding him too drunk to resist, Susan takes advantage of that to engage in an oral sexual act with Seth.

In this case, Susan is guilty under this law because she is aware that Seth is highly intoxicated and cannot consent to a sexual act.

Oral Copulation on an Unconscious Party

You are also guilty under PC 287 if you engage in oral copulation with an unconscious party. But the following elements must be true for the court to deliver a guilty verdict:

  • You engaged in oral copulation on an unconscious individual who could not understand the nature or possible consequences of the sexual act
  • You were aware or should have possibly known, that the other party was unconscious and could not resist

The victim does not have to be physically unconscious for the court to find you guilty. The judge could deliver a guilty verdict if the prosecutor can prove that the other party was unconscious of the act’s nature and possible consequences. When a person is unconscious of a sexual act’s nature and potential outcomes, it could mean any of the following:

  • That they were asleep or unconscious
  • They were unaware that you were performing a sexual act on them
  • They were unaware of the essential characteristics of the sexual act because you tricked or lied to them or failed to disclose crucial information to them.

Example: When examining young patients, Jimmy, a gynecologist, sometimes performs oral sex on them under the pretense that it is part of the examination routine. Jimmy is guilty under PC 287 of oral copulation on an unconscious individual. The fact that he uses tricks on his young patients to ensure they do not understand the basic nature of the act makes him guilty under this statute.

Oral Copulation on a Disabled Person

The prosecutor can also file charges against you under PC 287 for the following reasons:

  • Engaging in oral copulation on an individual with a physical or developmental disability or mental disorder.
  • The physical, developmental, or mental disorder or disability prevents the person from comprehending the act’s nature and likely consequences.
  • You knew that the victim had a disability or disorder that prevented them from consenting to the act.

Possible Penalties for a Conviction Under PC 287

Oral copulation by fear/force is a straight felony offense. Here are the penalties you will likely receive if the jury delivers a guilty verdict after trial:

  • Felony probation, but only if you face oral copulation charges involving a person with a physical, mental, or developmental disability
  • Three to eight years in prison
  • Up to $10,000 in court fines

If your victim is a child or was a child when you committed the act, the judge will increase your prison sentence as follows:

  • Six to ten years if the victim was at least 14 years old
  • Eight to twelve years if the minor was 14 or younger

The judge will also increase your penalties if you commit the crime in concert with another person or other people. In that case, your penalties could be. The enhanced penalty applies if you engaged in oral copulation in person or aided or abetted someone else to commit the crime. Your enhanced sentence could include the following:

  • Five to nine years if your victim was an adult
  • Eight to twelve years for a victim who was a child of at least 14 years during the offense
  • Ten to fourteen years for a victim who was younger than 14

Additionally, a conviction for oral copulation by fear or force comes with an order to register in the sex offender registry. The sex offender registry provides the police and members of the public with information about the details and location of a convicted sex offender. The judge will order you to register in the registry for life under the tier-three sex offender registry after your conviction under PC 287.

Following the judge’s order,  you will register every year with the local police where you live. Registering means providing your identifying details, including your name, address, and physical description. You must continue registering annually within five working days of your birthday. You must also update your information in the registry whenever you change your address. That enables the police to know your whereabouts at all times.

How To Fight Your Charges Under PC 287

The consequences of a conviction under PC 287 are severe. In addition to a lengthy prison sentence and a hefty court fine, you will be a registered sex offender. All these consequences are life-changing as they impact your entire life, including your social and career lives. But you can fight your charges for a more favorable outcome in your case with the assistance of a skilled criminal defense attorney. Fortunately, your lawyer can use the best defense strategies to compel the judge to dismiss or reduce the charges. Here are some of the techniques that can help your case:

You Are Falsely Accused

False accusations are common, especially when it pertains to sex crimes. Your accuser could be an ex- or current partner. They could make false claims based on anger, revenge, jealousy, or other emotionally driven motives. Hundreds of innocent people are convicted every year for crimes they did not commit. The criminal justice system is aware of this and would allow you to counter the prosecutor’s allegations if you are falsely accused.

Working with a skilled criminal attorney will work to your advantage. They will know the evidence to present during trial and how to argue your case to convince the jury that you did not commit the crime for which you are accused. If it works, the judge will dismiss your charges.

Note that merely stating your innocence during trial is insufficient to obtain an acquittal. You must present evidence and arguments to convince the court that you are innocent of your charges. The jury relies on solid evidence and arguments to decide criminal cases.

The Victim Gave Consent to Oral Copulation

Remember that oral copulation, in and of itself, is not illegal. You break the law if you commit the act through fear or force and against the other party’s consent. The judge will dismiss your charges if you have the victim’s consent and can demonstrate it in court.

Generally, the issue of consent in sex offenses is sometimes ambiguous. It could be difficult for anyone to prove that another person consented or did not consent to a sexual act if they have not verbally communicated it. The judge can dismiss your charges if you reasonably believe the other party agreed to the act and can demonstrate it in court.

Additionally, it is challenging for prosecutors to prove a lack of consent. In most cases, the trial comes down to she-said, he-said. The jury rules in favor of the party with a compelling argument.

The Prosecutor Lacks Sufficient Evidence

People who perpetrate sex crimes do so in hiding, leaving minimal or no evidence behind. It becomes increasingly difficult for the prosecutor to prove oral copulation beyond a reasonable doubt because this particular offense leaves no physical evidence behind, like an injury. The law requires prosecutors to establish criminal cases beyond a reasonable doubt for the court to deliver a guilty verdict. If that does not happen, the judge will dismiss your charges.

Your attorney can exploit the prosecutor's lack of compelling evidence to compel the judge to dismiss your charges.

The Police Misconducted Themselves During Arrest or Crime Investigation

Police misconduct is also not uncommon in criminal cases. Arresting officers do not always follow the rules, violating the suspected offender's rights. If that happens to you, you can contest your arrest in court.

For example, if the arresting officer harassed you in any way or violated your right to counsel, that could be sufficient grounds for case dismissal. An aggressive attorney will ensure that any evidence the police gather against you after violating your rights is not admitted during trial.

Find an Experienced Defense Attorney Near Me

Do you or someone you know face criminal charges for oral copulation by fear/force in Fresno?

That is a severe charge whose conviction can significantly impact your life for a very long time. You will likely receive a long sentence after conviction and must pay a hefty court fine. Other life-changing consequences include an order to register as a sex offender and a damaging criminal record that will follow you for a very long time.

But you can change the outcome of your case with our help at California Criminal Lawyer Group. Our highly trained and experienced criminal defense attorneys use the best defense strategies to deliver favorable outcomes in our client’s cases. We will walk you through the complex legal process, explain and defend your rights, and fight alongside you until you are happy with the results. Contact us at 559-712-8377, and let us start the legal process with you.