Chapter 10
Criminal Sexual Conduct,
Assault and Battery, Kidnapping
and False Imprisonment
Rape Issues
The common law treated rape as a capital
crime (punishable by death).
In 1977, the US Supreme Court declared the
death penalty for rape unconstitutional (on the
grounds of disproportionality).
Acquaintance rape (date rape) occurs when
the defendant admits to sexual intercourse
but claims it was consensual while the victim
characterizes it as rape.
Symptoms of Rape Trauma
Remembering the event
Strong emotions
Psychological impact
Physical symptoms
Self-medication
Common Law Elements of Rape
Rape defined as the forcible carnal knowledge
of a woman against her will.
Vaginal intercourse required to be carried out
by force or threat of severe bodily harm without
victim’s consent.
Common Law Elements (cont.)
Prosecution required to overcome a number of
hurdles under the common law to convict the
defendant:
Immediate complaint
Corroboration rule
Sexual activity
Judicial instruction
Common Law Elements (cont.)
 A victim was required to resist sexual advances to the
“utmost” to establish lack of consent.
Earnest resistance
Reasonable resistance
 Resistance not required under the common law
standard where a victim is incapable of understanding
the nature of intercourse as a result of intoxication,
sleep, or lack of consciousness.
Fraud in the factum
Fraud in inducement
Rape Reform
 Rape shield laws prohibit the introduction of
evidence concerning a victim’s past sexual
activity.
 Provisions of modified/reformed rape statutes:
Gender neutral
Marital exemption
Degrees of rape
Sexual intercourse
Consent
Coercion
Rape in marriage
Punishment & Sexual Assault
Sexual assault is typically divided into two
categories:
Aggravated rape (first-degree sexual assault)
Simple rape (second-degree sexual assault)
Punishment options are more severe for
aggravated rape.
Modern Rape: Actus Reus
 Genital copulation
 Anal & oral copulation
 Digital penetration & penetration with an
instrument as well as genital, anal, & oral sex
Modern Rape: Actus Reus (cont.)
How much force is required?
Extrinsic force approach requires an act of
force beyond the physical effort required to
accomplish penetration.
Intrinsic force approach requires only the
amount of force necessary to achieve
penetration.
Commonwealth v. Berkowitz (1994)
In the Interest of M.T.S. (1992)
Other Approaches to Modern Rape:
Actus Reus
 Force requirement maybe satisfied by threat of
force (actual force may not be required), but:
Must be threat of death or serious bodily harm
Victim’s fear that the assailant will carry out threat
must be reasonable
 Force is not required where the victim is a
juvenile; in cases of statutory rape.
Modern Rape: Mens Rea
 The majority of states accept an objective test that
recognizes that it is a defense to rape that the
defendant honestly & reasonably believed that the
victim consented.
 Several states do not recognize the mistake of fact
defense & adhere to the view that a defendant’s
belief as to a victim’s consent should not be
considered in determining guilt.
 Equivocal conduct occurs when the victim’s nonconsensual reactions were capable of being
reasonably, but mistakenly interpreted by the
assailant as indicating consent.
Statutory Rape
 Sexual relations with a juvenile (various age
restrictions by jurisdiction)
 Law based on several considerations:
Understanding
Harmful
Social values
Vulnerability
 General rule is that statutory rape is a strict
liability offense (no mens rea requirement) in
which a male is guilty of rape by engaging in
intercourse with an underage female.
Statutory Rape & the MPC
The Model Penal Code limits strict liability for
statutory rape to sexual relations with a
woman less than 10 years old.
The MPC also punishes sexual intercourse
with a woman 16 years of age or younger by
a male at least four years older as the less
serious offense of corruption of a minor.
Garnett v. State (1993)
Withdrawal of Consent
This type of legislation provides that a person
“who initially consents to sexual penetration or
sexual conduct is not deemed to have
consented to any sexual penetration or sexual
conduct that occurs after he/she withdraws
consent during the court of that sexual
penetration or conduct.”
People v. John Z. (2003)
Rape Shield Laws
 Prohibit the defense from asking the victim about
or introducing evidence concerning sexual
relations with individuals other than the accused
or introducing evidence concerning the victim’s
reputation for chastity.
Rape Shield Laws (cont.)
 These laws are based on several considerations:
Harassment
Relevance
Prejudice
Complaints
 Do not prohibit evidence about past sexual activity
in every instance.
 6th Amendment issues
right to fair trial & to confront witnesses
10.1. You Decide: Alston
Do you think that Alston was guilty of raping
Brown? Provide support from the modern
law of rape for your opinion.
How do you think a judge or jury would
decide in this case & why?
Assault & Battery
 Separate offenses
 An assault may be committed either by attempting
to commit a battery or by placing another in fear of a
battery (does not involve physical contact).
 A battery is the application of force to another
person.
 Typically merged together at prosecution & both are
considered misdemeanors.
 Serious assaults & batteries are punished at
aggravated levels.
The Elements of Battery
 Modern battery statutes require physical contact
that results in bodily injury or an offensive
touching, contact likely to be regarded as
offensive by a reasonable person.
 The Model Penal Code allows for assaults &
batteries satisfying an intentional, purposeful,
reckless, or negligent level of intent.
 Most states statutes more narrowly limit the
intent required for these offenses.
Simple & Aggravated Battery
All batteries include an act, intent, & consent.
Aggravated battery typically requires:
serious injury,
the use of a dangerous or deadly weapon,
the intent to kill, rape, or seriously harm.
Mayhem is generally defined as “malicious
wounding” & is included in several state battery
statutes. (ex. Bobbit)
Assault
 Assault is committed by an attempted battery or by
placing an individual in fear of a battery.
 Majority of jurisdictions reject that an individual may
be prosecuted for an attempt to attempt a battery
(e.g., attempted assault).
Aggravated Assault
 Generally based on factors similar to those
constituting an aggravated battery.
 Stalking is recognized in all but two states.
 Cyberstalking increasingly is being recognized as a
criminal offense.
The Elements of Assault
 Attempted battery assault:
Intent
Act
Present ability
Victim
 Assault of placing another in fear of battery:
Intent
Act
Victim
Carter v. Commonwealth (2004)
Waldon v. State (1997)
10.2. You Decide: Chambers
Did Chambers commit an assault with a deadly
weapon as the prosecution contends? Why or
why not?
Could Chambers’ act be considered a
“threatened battery” or might it be better
characterized as an attempted battery? Which
would be the more likely charge to result in a
conviction in this case & why?
Kidnapping
 At common law, kidnapping was the forcible
abduction or stealing away of a person from
his/her own country & sending him/her into another
country (a misdemeanor).
 Lindbergh baby kidnapping (1932) resulted in the
Federal Kidnapping Act, the “Lindbergh Law.”
 This law prohibits the kidnapping & carrying away
of an individual across state lines for the purpose
of obtaining a ransom or reward.
Excluded parents in its coverage
Kidnapping (cont.)
 In 1981, Congress passed the Parental
Kidnapping Prevention Act (custody disputes).
 Congress has passed additional legislation to
combat the international sexual trafficking industry:
 Victims of Trafficking & Violence Protection Act
(2000)
 PROTECT Act (2003)
Kidnapping: Criminal Intent
 Mens rea typically defined as an intent to move or
to confine the victim without his/her consent.
Kidnapping: Criminal Act
 The forcible movement of a person from one place
to another—central issue is the extent of
movement required.
 Courts require that the movement or detention of
the victim must be unlawful (without the victim’s
consent by force or threat of force).
People v. Aguilar (2004)
10.3. You Decide: Goodhue
 For his acts, Goodhue was prosecuted &
convicted of attempted sexual assault, burglary,
& kidnapping. Do you agree that he kidnapped
Carolyn? Why or why not?
 Remember to rely on the statutory considerations
regarding “movement” & kidnapping when
providing support for your opinion.
 What about the other charges? Do you agree
with the other convictions? And, what about the
punishment imposed? Agree or disagree, & why?
False Imprisonment
 The intentional & unlawful confinement or restraint
of another person.
 The detention must be unlawful; without consent.
 Mens rea element typically described as requiring
an intent to restrain the victim.
 Actus reus element typically described as
compelling the victim to remain where he did not
want to remain or to go where he did not want to
go.
False Imprisonment (cont.)
 Confinement may be achieved by physical
restraint, threat of force, or without force (locking
a door).
 Difference between kidnapping & false
imprisonment is that false imprisonment does not
require any movement.
 False imprisonment requires a detention that
may take place in public or in the privacy of a
home & may be for a brief or lengthy period.
Key Issues
Rape
Common law, elements, reform, punishment,
statutory rape, withdrawal of consent, rape shield
laws
Assault & Battery
Elements, simple & aggravated status, mayhem,
stalking & cyberstalking
Kidnapping
Lindbergh Law, recent legislation, elements
False Imprisonment
Elements & issues