Seattle Sex Crimes Defense Attorneys
You’ve been arrested for a sex crime.
Now what?
We’re betting you have several burning questions you want answered, which is why we created this page. Here you’ll find simple and straightforward answers to the questions that really matter to you right now. Despite this, the best way to make sure all of your questions are answered is to simply pick up the phone and give us a call for a free confidential consultation.

Court and Michelle developed a specialty representing those accused of sex crimes through their involvement with Dateline NBC’s To Catch A Predator show. Court was the first attorney in the country to take one of these cases to trial. Read about Court’s success with this first case here.

Common Sex Crime Questions
A little further down on this page you can read a few brief descriptions about some of the more common sex crimes in Washington. You can also see what sex crimes require registration on this page as well. For now, here is list of some of the more common sex crimes we see in Washington:
- Rape 1, 2, & 3
- Rape of a Child 1, 2, 3
- Child Molestation 1, 2, 3
- Sexual Misconduct with a Minor 1, 2
- Indecent Liberties
- Voyeurism
- Failure to register as a sex offender
- Communication with a minor for immoral purposes
- Possession of depictions of Minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct 1, 2
The consequences of a conviction vary greatly depending on the charge and other circumstances. We list some potential consequences here, but in order to get the more specific answers about your particular case, simply pick up the phone and give us a call.
- Jail/Prison Sentence
- Registration as a sex offender
- Felony Conviction, leading to loss of rights such a voting and possession of firearms
- Formal probation/Community Custody
- Counseling/therapy
- Alternative sentencing such as work release, electronic home monitoring, and/or community service
- Fines
- Loss of job
That depends on whether you are convicted of a sex crime and what that sex crime is. Further, Washington State has the following different levels of registration: Lifetime, Indefinite, 15 years, and 10 years. The duty to register begins after you are convicted and released from custody. Here are the lists:
Lifetime Registration |
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Indefinite Registration |
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15 Year Registration |
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10 Year Registration |
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- Dismissal of charges in the pre-trial stages
- Special Sex Offender Sentencing Alternative (SSOSA)
- Reduction of charges
- First Time Offender Waiver (if no prior record)
- Reduction of penalties
- Not guilty verdict after trial
- Hung Jury leading to Mistrial
- Guilty verdict after trial
- Who has been convicted of or charged with a crime of sexual violence; and
- Who suffers from a mental abnormality or personality disorder;
- Which makes the person likely to engage in predatory acts of sexual violence if not confined in a secure facility.
SSOSA is essentially a way to avoid a potentially lengthy prison sentence by undergoing treatment instead (although you could still be facing up to a year in county jail). In addition to possible county jail a sentence to state prison sentence will also be imposed, but it gets “suspended” pending successful completion of treatment (meaning you never have to serve the prison sentence).
Many sex crimes could potentially qualify for SSOSA, but not Rape 2 nor any other sex offense that is also considered to be a “serious violent offense.” If you are eligible based on your alleged offense, you must also meet the following criteria:
- If the conviction is a result of a guilty pela, you must admit that you committed the crime alleged, and not enter into plea of “no contest.”
- No prior convictions for a sex crime
- No violent crime convictions within the past five years
- No substantial bodily harm to the victim
- The victim was not a stranger to you; there was some sort of established relationship/connection to the victim
- Your standard sentencing range for the offense you are convicted of includes the possibility of less than 11 years in prison
It’s important to note that even if you are eligible for SSOSA, it does not mean you will get it, or that you even want to get it for that matter. It takes an experienced attorney to evaluate your case and then give you advice as to whether SSOSA is a good option for you or not. If it is, then we will make sure all the appropriate steps are being taken to give you the best possible chance of getting this resolution.
Other Common Questions
- Don’t talk to anyone about it besides your attorney
- Obtain a private polygraph examination
- Have a private psychosexual evaluation
- Gather character reference letters
- Provide us with a confidential and detailed version of events
- Provide us with your own mini autobiography so we can know as much as possible about you
The short answer is through hard work. Here’s a little closer look:
Some of the legal issues we analyze while handling your case:
- Inconsistent statements made by the accuser
- Lack of physical evidence to support accuser’s claims
- Determination of whether any incriminating statements you made were in violation of your Miranda Rights
- Legality of any search & seizure issues
- Collecting additional witness statements that support our theory of the case
Some of the mitigating factors we introduce and discuss during negotiation:
- Humanize you to the prosecutor; we want to know everything about you. Give us your life story. We will memorize it and then be able to talk to the prosecutor very intelligently about you; as if we have known you for years.
- Gather a bunch of character reference letters for you.
- Depending on the circumstances, get proactive and have you undergo counseling at the early stages of the case.
- Explain the impact this matter will have on your job and family.
Brief Overview of a Few Common Sex Crimes
The crime of Indecent liberties revolves around the capacity to consent to sexual contact. In other words, was the alleged victim incapable of consent because of being mentally defective or incapacitated or physically helpless? This comes up in a number of different circumstances. A few of which are:
- Someone has had too much alcohol to drink or taken too many drugs to be able to consent
- A doctor/patient examination
- An allegation of inappropriate contact by a massage therapist
- When someone is a resident at a drug rehab or a mental health facility and alleges inappropriate contact with someone who had supervisory authority over them.
Prosecutors often take a hard stance on indecent liberty cases and as a result these cases have a higher likelihood of ending up in trial compared to many other cases. We always exhaust all pre-trial remedies first, but if that if trial is our only option then we will be ready to fight hard for a “got guilty” verdict.
Voyeurism arrests are on the rise in Washington. This is in part due to virtually every phone now being equipped with a camera and/or video recording capabilities. We typically see allegations of this come up where the victim was in a place where they had a reasonable expectation of privacy (a bathroom, a clothing store changing room, a locker room, a house, apartment or hotel, etc.) and they are filmed or photographed without their knowledge and consent.
The state also must prove that the filming or photographing was done for the purpose of arousing or gratify sexual desires.
We have successfully handled a number of these cases and are standing by ready to discuss the best possible defense of your voyeurism case as well.
This is referred to as possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. These days, we most commonly see this charge associated with electronic files/folders stored on a client’s computer or other device. There are varying approached to defending this allegation. For instance, many times our client does not personally know the person in the picture/video. Thus if you are not in possession of any facts that would prove you knew the age of the person, then you have a very viable defense to this charge if the person depicted in the images arguably appears as though he/she could be 18 years old. If this is not a viable argument, there are other lines of defense that can be pursued as well as mitigating evidence that can be presented.