A conviction for a sexual offence can ruin your reputation and carry stiff jail sentences. Richard Freeman (AKA Mr. Technicality) is a leading criminal defence Solicitor Advocate in Scotland with thousands of cases to his credit.
We defend sexual offence allegations for clients including rape (click for details) . It is vital that you obtain legal advice from an expert Scottish Law Firm with the necessary experience to defend sexual assault cases. Richard Freeman has dealt with many thousands of cases spanning a very successful 30 year career. His legal counsel is often sought by his peers and he has successfully represented many high profile clients and been able to keep their details out of the media. His cross examination prowess in the courtroom is second to none.
Do not delay, time is vital in order for us to properly examine the evidence against you, contact potential witnesses, ensure timelines are consistent with the evidence and investigate many other aspects in order to create your strongest legal defence.
Our expertise in defending Sexual Assault allegations have saved numerous innocent clients from having their lives ruined. Call our national helpline 0800 567 7810 now or our local numbers. Alternatively, complete a contact form or request a call back.
OR
Richard Freeman, Solicitor Advocate represents clients in the High Court and Sheriff Courts throughout Scotland who have been prosecuted for sexual offences, from: multi-rapes, predatory rapes, sexual offences by other forms of penetration, sexual assaults, indecent assaults and sodomy.
These offences have been defined by the Sexual Offences Scotland Act 2009 which also provides for complete defences to the charges based on consent and a reasonable belief of consent, even if in error. Whether an implied or express consent by the alleged victim (who can be male or female) amounts to a defence or not, is set out in the Sexual Offences Scotland Act.
The above offences can all clearly be committed against children. The only difference is the question of when a defence of Consent is available.
For example in terms of S18 of the Act, rape of a child under 13 years is constituted by any penile penetration of a child’s vagina, anus or mouth. There can be no question of consent, given the age of the alleged victim. This is obviously a very serious allegation which can lead to life imprisonment.
The Act has created many specific child-related offences which can be seen here with the associated range of penalties relating thereto [schedule 2 of the Act].
These offences are prosecuted invariably, but not necessarily, as a result of two or more alleged witnesses coming forward after many years, before the offences they complain about, were said to have been committed.
The early stages of these cases, usually come to the attention of the police when two or more people make a joint approach to the police, claiming that they have been a victim of the same, or similar behaviour, over a period of time in similar circumstances.
Another common way these cases start is when one witness has made an unsubstantiated allegation to the police, and flowing from that they actively look for other potential victims, either from the same family, if it is a family member who has made the allegation, or within a work place environment, if that’s relevant, or ex-partners and spouses who have been in previous relationships with the suspect. It is effectively a trawling exercise by the police to obtain necessary corroboration to be able to report the matter to the Fiscal’s Office for prosecution. This is an important part of the process which has to be examined very carefully by a solicitor when preparing for a defence.
By the nature of an historic allegation, there will be an absence of physical evidence such as fresh injuries or DNA. This is either because it has been lost in time, or because the allegation has been fabricated. If however other people come forward claiming they have been subjected to the same or similar offending, then this can support each other’s verbal testimony by providing mutual corroboration, without the need for any physical or eye witness evidence. This is often referred to as evidence being corroborated by the Moorov doctrine. There are many appeal court decisions regularly featuring in the Law Reports challenging the application of this doctrine. If the doctrine has not been applied correctly, and each case depends on it for proof, then all charges fall and the accused is entitled to be found not guilty of all allegations.
Some historic offences require to be prosecuted as the law existed at that time i.e. before the 2009 Act commenced. It is important that a solicitor is very much still on top of that law to ensure a client’s interests are properly protected.
We have also defended many clients who have been prosecuted on the same indictment with both laws applying because of the cross over of alleged offending occurring before and after the commencement of the 2009 Act.
It is imperative that anyone being investigated for, or accused of any such offences, obtains early advice from a solicitor or solicitor advocate who has an intimate knowledge and excellent comprehension of how the various sections of this Act interacts which each other.
Knowing the law exceptionally well will only take you so far.
A unique procedure has been created by S275 of the Criminal Procedure Scotland Act 1995 when defending Sexual Offences, which places great restrictions on the ability of a solicitor to cross examine complainers in sexual cases. The essence of it is that before a solicitor can cross-examine a complainer or lead evidence from an accused about relevant matters relating to his clients defence, the solicitor requires to prepare a detailed document, known as a S275 Application setting out the evidence that he wants to adduce, and the questions he seeks to ask the witnesses at the trial.
It is important to know the ground rules as a trial strategy prepared on evidence that will not be allowed by the court will be seriously compromised. Often for example attempts are made by solicitors to lead evidence of prior consensual acts of intercourse, particularly between two parties who were not in a relationship, presumably to show the context in which the complainer may have consented to sexual activity. The High Court has said on many occasions that the mere fact that there has been prior sexual activity, does not make the offence alleged, to be more or less likely to have occurred, with the consent of the complainer.
However there are circumstances when such evidence can be justified as relevant and admissible but it is extremely important to set that out clearly in the S275 application otherwise the court is likely to prohibit the use of that evidence.
An example where the court has allowed other evidence of other sexual activity is where it has occurred very shortly after (a matter of hours or a few days at the most) the date and time when the offence is alleged to have been committed. This is because it could be said to strike at the credibility of the complainer.
Other issues which become the focus of such an application, is where it is alleged that the complainer has made up other false allegations of sexual offences; whether a mental illness could be considered relevant; the fact that the complainer was intoxicated, and evidence to demonstrate that the complainer has a motive for lying.
The preparation of the 275 Application has become something of an art form which cannot be given too much attention when drafting.
Penalties for Rape and other Sexual Offences are very severe. If you have been charged with comitting rape or any sexual offence, it is imperative that you obtain competent and expert legal advice as fast as possible. This is a highly specialised area of the law and selecting the right Solicitor Advocate is vital.
Don't delay! You can Contact us by form or by phone on 0800 567 7810 to find out what can be done.