Minimum Sentences For Sex Offenders Essay

As reported by cogwriter.com, every 98 seconds in the U.S. someone is sexually assaulted. Each year, the number of victims is approximately increased by a heaping 321,500 people in the U.S., which one should keep in mind only includes those who are 12 years of age and older. According to research, 44% of rape occurs in children under 18, 15% are younger than 12, and another 29% of rape victims were from 12 to 17 years old. Without the proper justice system, these rates will continue to increase over time and no justice will be served. I propose for New York State to consider an extension of the minimum and maximum sentences for sex offenders. As of right now, New York law has set the minimum time served at 1-2 years and the maximum at 7 years,

According to the New York Sexual Assault Statute, sexual contact without one’s consent is considered to be a third degree assault. It is also when the offender, who is 21 years old or over, is involved in sexual contact with a minor, someone under the age of 17, without their consent. Depending on the circumstances of the act, including the victim and perpetrator is age, the degree of the offense will elevate. Thus, a second-degree assault would be if one engaged in sexual contact with a minor without their consent. At the moment of the assault, the victim was unaware or unable to give consent because of their lack of knowledge in what sexual contact is. Lastly, first-degree sexual assault is considered to be when one is assault by forcible compulsion, threat of death, physical injury or kidnapping. It would also be when the minor is under the age of 11 years old, or if the child is under 13 and the defendant is 21 or older, and is unable to give consent and is physically incapable of self-defense. As a result of realizing that they may never get the justice they truly deserve, it becomes a bigger obstacle for children to speak up about the devastating experience they've gone