2009 Minnesota Statutes: 2nd Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct Charges

2nd Degree – Described as sexual contact. Second degree criminal sexual conduct is one of the most severe criminal sexual conduct charges. 2nd degree criminal sexual conduct charges are typically brought against a person if violence, force, a weapon, or threat of violence was used at the time of the act. 2nd degree criminal sexual conduct charges may also be brought against a person if the victim was extremely young, did not consent, or was unable to consent.


609.343 CRIMINAL SEXUAL CONDUCT IN THE SECOND DEGREE.
Subdivision 1.Crime defined.

A person who engages in sexual contact with another person is guilty of criminal sexual conduct in the second degree if any of the following circumstances exists:

(a) the complainant is under 13 years of age and the actor is more than 36 months older than the complainant. Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense. In a prosecution under this clause, the state is not required to prove that the sexual contact was coerced;

(b) the complainant is at least 13 but less than 16 years of age and the actor is more than 48 months older than the complainant and in a position of authority over the complainant. Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense;

(c) circumstances existing at the time of the act cause the complainant to have a reasonable fear of imminent great bodily harm to the complainant or another;

(d) the actor is armed with a dangerous weapon or any article used or fashioned in a manner to lead the complainant to reasonably believe it to be a dangerous weapon and uses or threatens to use the dangerous weapon to cause the complainant to submit;

(e) the actor causes personal injury to the complainant, and either of the following circumstances exist:

(i) the actor uses force or coercion to accomplish the sexual contact; or

(ii) the actor knows or has reason to know that the complainant is mentally impaired, mentally incapacitated, or physically helpless;

(f) the actor is aided or abetted by one or more accomplices within the meaning of section 609.05, and either of the following circumstances exists:

(i) an accomplice uses force or coercion to cause the complainant to submit; or

(ii) an accomplice is armed with a dangerous weapon or any article used or fashioned in a manner to lead the complainant to reasonably believe it to be a dangerous weapon and uses or threatens to use the weapon or article to cause the complainant to submit;

(g) the actor has a significant relationship to the complainant and the complainant was under 16 years of age at the time of the sexual contact. Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense; or

(h) the actor has a significant relationship to the complainant, the complainant was under 16 years of age at the time of the sexual contact, and:

(i) the actor or an accomplice used force or coercion to accomplish the contact;

(ii) the complainant suffered personal injury; or

(iii) the sexual abuse involved multiple acts committed over an extended period of time.

Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by the complainant is a defense.
Subd. 2.Penalty.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in section 609.3455; or Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 609.109, a person convicted under subdivision 1 may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 25 years or to a payment of a fine of not more than $35,000, or both.

(b) Unless a longer mandatory minimum sentence is otherwise required by law or the Sentencing Guidelines provide for a longer presumptive executed sentence, the court shall presume that an executed sentence of 90 months must be imposed on an offender convicted of violating subdivision 1, clause (c), (d), (e), (f), or (h). Sentencing a person in a manner other than that described in this paragraph is a departure from the Sentencing Guidelines.

(c) A person convicted under this section is also subject to conditional release under section 609.3455.
Subd. 3.Stay.

Except when imprisonment is required under section 609.3455; or Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 609.109, if a person is convicted under subdivision 1, clause (g), the court may stay imposition or execution of the sentence if it finds that:

(a) a stay is in the best interest of the complainant or the family unit; and

(b) a professional assessment indicates that the offender has been accepted by and can respond to a treatment program.

If the court stays imposition or execution of sentence, it shall include the following as conditions of probation:

(1) incarceration in a local jail or workhouse;

(2) a requirement that the offender complete a treatment program; and

(3) a requirement that the offender have no unsupervised contact with the complainant until the offender has successfully completed the treatment program unless approved by the treatment program and the supervising correctional agent.

History:

1975 c 374 s 4; 1979 c 258 s 12; 1981 c 51 s 3; 1983 c 204 s 2; 1984 c 628 art 3 s 11; 1985 c 24 s 6; 1985 c 286 s 16; 1986 c 444; 1989 c 290 art 4 s 13; 1992 c 571 art 1 s 15; 1998 c 367 art 3 s 8; art 6 s 15; 2000 c 437 s 11; 2002 c 381 s 2; 2005 c 136 art 2 s 14,15; 2007 c 13 art 3 s 37