The essence of Michigan law is summarized below:
Stated as - "Use of force or coercion to
penetrate oral, vaginal, or anal body cavity of a person who has not consented
or is incapable of consent."
- Force or Coercion -
Force is the physical overpowering of another individual
which results in a sexual experience.
Coercion is the manipulation of another individual which
results in a sexual experience. For example:
• Talking someone into having sex; persuading, threatening, or intimidating
• Using alcohol as a tool to break down sexual reluctance
• Threatening to harm someone
• Not letting someone leave a room and/or locking a door
so they can't leave
- Penetration -
Penetration does not just refer to the penis being
penetrated in the vagina. The law states that any body cavity,
as listed above, that is penetrated by another body part (fingers, for
example) or an object is illegal.
- Consent -
Consent is clear and freely given. If there is evidence of non-consent, such as a person pulling back from a person, consent has not been given. The absence of "no"
is not consent. Furthermore, a verbalized "yes" which has
been coerced, as in the examples above, does not constitute a freely
given "yes". In such cases, consent has not been given, and
one who continues to have a sexual experience without this consent potentially
could be charged with Criminal Sexual Conduct.
.
Three reasons a person cannot give consent
- An individual cannot consent to a sexual experience if they are "mentally incapacitated" by drugs or alcohol. This means that a person is temporarily incapable of appraising or controlling his/her conduct due to the influence of drugs or alcohol.
- An individual who is 15 years of age or under is considered a minor
under this law and is not considered legally able to consent
to a sexual experience. If an individual 16 yrs. or older engages in
a sexual experience with someone 15 yrs or younger, that is Statutory
Rape regardless of whether the minor agreed to the experience or
not. A parent or legal guardian of the minor can press charges against
the adult even if the minor consented to the experience.
- An individual who is legally developmentally disables, mentally retarded, mentally ill, mentally incapable, or physically helpless
is not capable of consenting to a sexual experience according to the
CSC law for Michigan.
Four Degrees of CSC for the State of Michigan
- First Degree - Felony
Includes penetration and aggravation. Aggravation
is any personal injury to the victim other than the penetration itself.
This could include any physical injury occurring to the victim or any
emotional trauma or mental anxiety the victim experiences as a result
of the incident.
- Second Degree - Felony
Includes sexual contact and aggravation. Sexual contact
is any touch of sexual nature which has not been consented to (touching,
fondling, etc.). It includes touching someone's butt, breasts,
penis, inner thigh, or vaginal area. Second degree must also include a personal injury to the victim (aggravation).
- Third Degree - Felony
Penetration only.
- Fourth Degree - Misdemeanor
Sexual contact only. This includes grabbing/touching a person's butt,
breasts, or penis, inner thigh, or vaginal area (with or without clothes covering those areas) is against the law whether or not
penetration or aggravation occurred.
Furthermore, if the victim is 13-16 years and the perpetrator is at least 5 years older, the perpetrator may suffer additional consequences due to the difference in age. This applies to CSC in the 4th degree only.
Maximum Consequences for CSC
1st degree- Life in prison with possibility for parole
2nd degree- 15 years in prison
3rd degree- 15 years in prison
4th degree- 2 years in prison or a fine of not more than $500, or both
The complete Michigan law can be found here.
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