Aggravated Sexual Assault Attorneys in Hackensack NJ

A rape charge, also referred to as Aggravated Sexual Assault, carries significant consequences if you are convicted in Bergen County.  You or your loved one will face penalties that include, but are not limited to, years in state prison, register as a sex offender, and hefty fines. Our law firm, the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall, has the experience and knowledge to defend this rape charge since we have:

  • Over two-hundred (200) years of combined experience
  • A team of eleven (11) criminal defense attorneys that devote their entire practice to criminal law
  • Our firm has eight (8) former prosecutors
    • Four (4) of our attorneys were former county prosecutors and held directorial positions of the Drug, Gang, and Gun Task Force, Major Crimes Division, Trial Division, Juvenile Division
  • Two (2) of our lawyers were recently selected to Super Lawyers Rising Stars 2021 list for New Jersey which is a highly credentialed, peer-influenced, third-party validated, and a patented process that only 2.5% of the attorneys in New Jersey are selected to this list
  • One (1) of our attorneys is Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Criminal Trial Attorney, a distinction held by less than 1% of attorneys in this State
  • Selected to the National Trial Lawyers Top 100 and Top 40 Under 40

An aggravated Sexual Assault charge has serious consequences, and you or your loved one need serious attorneys to handle these allegations. We have three (3) offices located throughout Bergen County. We have offices in Paramus, Hackensack, as well as Fort Lee. Call one of our offices for a free consultation at 201-429-9783, we’re available 24/7.

Aggravated Sexual Assault Charge in Hackensack

N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2(a) makes aggravated sexual assault an extraordinarily serious offense that carries grave ramifications in the event that you plead or are found guilty at the Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack New Jersey. These penalties are triggered under the following circumstances:

  • A person is guilty of aggravated sexual assault if he commits an act of sexual penetration (finger(s), penile, and/or any other object) with a person that is:
    • 13 years or younger
    • At least 13 but younger than 16; and
      • The defendant is related to the alleged victim by blood or “affinity to the third degree” or
      • The defendant watches or disciplines the alleged victim by his/her’s legal, professional, or occupational status, or
      • The defendant is “a resource family parent, a guardian, or stands in loco parentis within the household”

The above, unfortunately, is one of the most common aggravated sexual assault charges in New Jersey. If you or a loved one is being charged with the above, they’ll likely be accompanying charges of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, Sexual Assault, and or Sexual Contact.

Are there other ways that I can be charged with aggravated sexual assault?

The answer to this is yes you can. Regardless of the person’s age and/or gender, you or your loved one can be charged with rape (aggravated sexual assault) if he/she sexual penetrates a person while:

  • He/she during the commission or attempted commission of a robbery, kidnapping, murder, aggravated assault on another person, burglary, arson, and/or criminal escape
  • He/she is armed with a weapon (handgun, knife, bat) or any item that would lead the alleged victim to reasonably think the item is a weapon and the defendant threatens either by word or movement that he/she will use that weapon;
  • He/she is helped by one or more people and the defendant uses physical force or coercion;
  • He/she uses physical force or coercion that results in a severe injury to the alleged victim;
  • The alleged victim was physically or mentally incapacitated (his includes intellectually and/or mentally incapacitated) and the defendant knew or should have known that the alleged victim was not capable of providing consent

What is “Sexual Penetration” Under NJ Law?

In New Jersey, sexual penetration is defined as any vaginal intercourse, cunnilingus, fellatio, anal intercourse, insertion of the hand, finger, or object into the anus or vagina by the defendant or by the defendant’s instructions. This is codified in N.J.S.A. 2C:14-1(c).

Penalties if Convicted of Aggravated Sexual Assault in Bergen County NJ

As stated before, the penalties for aggravated sexual assault can be grave. If you or a loved one is facing aggravated sexual assault at the Bergen County Courthouse, it’s imperative that you or your loved one know the penalties if convicted. Aggravated sexual assault is a crime of the first degree. A first-degree crime is the most severe grading of a crime here in New Jersey. Typically, a first degree charge carries:

  • A maximum of twenty (20) and a minimum of ten (10) years in state prison.
  • However, under NJSA 2C:14-2(a), if you or a loved one is convicted of aggravated sexual assault then you or your loved one shall be sentenced to at least twenty-five (25) years, but can also sentence you to life imprisonment.
    • Further, if you or a loved one is sentenced to life imprisonment, then under the law it is required that at least twenty-five (25) years have to be served before being eligible for parole.
    • If you or a loved one is sentenced to twenty-five (25) years or more (but not life imprisonment), at least eighty-five (85%) percent of your sentence must be served before becoming eligible for parole.
    • Parole Supervision for Life (PSL)
    • Register as a sex offender pursuant to ‘Megan’s Law’

First Degree Sexual Assault Charges That Fall Under Jessica Lunsford Act

The Jessica Lunsford Act was enacted in 2014. New Jersey was actually one of the last states in the U.S. to enact this law. The “Lunsford Act” stems from a nine-year-old Florida girl that was raped and murdered by a convicted sex offender back.

Under the Jessica Lunsford Act, a defendant charged with rape now faces a minimum twenty-five (25) years to life in prison if the victim is under 13 years of age.  There is also no parole eligibility under the Jessica Lunsford Act. You should also know that prosecutor is restricted in plea negotiations when this act applies; the best they may offer is a 15-year sentence prior to indictment.

Prior to the Lunsford Act, rape charges at most were 20 years in state prison, and at a minimum of 10 years. There was also parole eligibility prior to the Lunsford Act if a defendant was convicted. However, as you can see, the Lunsford Act upped the stakes in rape on a child under 13 years of age. Therefore, this obviously makes the charge one of the most serious charges a defendant can face here in New Jersey.

Bergen County Criminal Law Firm in Fort Lee, New Jersey

To ensure that your rights will be protected to the fullest extent allowed by law, it is important that you engage an experienced New Jersey criminal defense attorney as soon as possible after being arrested for a sex crime. Set up a free initial legal consultation with the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall at any of our three (3) of our locations in Bergen County (Paramus, Hackensack, and Fort Lee) today to get started on a strong legal defense. Feel free to call us at 201-429-9783, we’re available 24/7