South Carolina Online Criminal Law Defense Firm
In the age of the Internet, online chat rooms and social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace have become a frequent forum for undercover law enforcement officers posing as minors. If you believe a "child" online is under 18 and ask or otherwise communicate a desire to meet for sexual purposes, you can be charged with online criminal solicitation of a minor — even if you never meet.
Under South Carolina law, you can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison for solicitation of a minor, making it possible to serve more time for a solicitation of a minor conviction than for a child molestation conviction. With serious penalties involved, it is important to mount a strong defense. For a free consultation with an experienced Lexington sexual solicitation of minors defense lawyer to discuss the allegations surrounding your charge and possible defenses, contact the Law Offices of Richard J. Breibart, LLC, online or by calling 866-645-8743.
Online Sex Offender Stings
Typically, an undercover officer will enter a chat room or create a social networking profile and establish a persona as an underage teen interested in sex. Often, the officer will join a conversation that is already sexual in nature or will wait for one to head in a sexual direction.
When a chat room participant or social media friend offers or solicits sexual favors from one of the undercover officers, investigators will track the participant's IP address and begin monitoring his or her email and Internet activity. Undercover agents will also pressure the participant to set up a meeting with the child.
If you are arrested after arriving at an agreed-on meeting site, your appearance at the location does not automatically mean that you are guilty. The prosecution must prove that a suspected solicitor intended to have sex with a minor. If you do not have condoms, drugs, alcohol or items of a sexual nature in your possession, the prosecution may not be able to prove that you intended to have sex with the person you believed to be a minor.
Internet Solicitation Attorneys Fighting Charges of Sexual Solicitation of a Minor
While you may think that the evidence against you is airtight, that is rarely the case. The actions and assumptions of the undercover officers may taint the evidence collected or the sting operation itself, and it is often possible to challenge law enforcement's version of events that led up to your arrest for online sexual solicitation of a minor.
To discuss your case and how we can help you throughout the entire criminal process, contact our sexual solicitation of minors defense lawyers by calling 866-645-8743 or emailing our office. Our clients come from communities around the state, including Greenville, Columbia, Florence, Charleston, Sumterand Spartanburg.
