Is Criminal Deviate Conduct a Sex Crime in Indiana?

Indiana law recognizes a wide range of criminal offenses that fall under the broader category of sex crimes. Specifically, IC 35-42-4 includes specific sex crime offenses involving juvenile and adult victims, and particular offenses involving a sex crime committed by a person in a particular profession or role with regard to the victim. This chapter of the Indiana Code also includes as a sex crime specific offenses committed by serious sex offenders, including violations of geographic and other restrictions placed on certain sex offenders. In a previous incarnation of the Indiana Code, this chapter included an offense of “criminal deviate conduct.” Now, this offense that used to be identified in IC 35-42-4-2, shows as being “repealed.”

Does criminal deviate conduct still exist as an offense under Indiana law? And can a person face charges related to criminal deviate conduct? Our Indianapolis sex crime defense lawyers can explain in more detail below.

Historical Application of Criminal Deviate Conduct Under Indiana Law

The sex crime of criminal deviate conduct used to be a specific offense under Indiana law, as we noted above. The offense was charged in situations involving an intentional or knowing “act of sexual gratification involving a sex organ of one person and the mouth or anus of another person” or “the penetration of the sex organ or anus of a person by an object.” For the offense to be charged, one of the following must have been true for the person engaging in the sexual deviate conduct:

• With a person by force or imminent threat of force
• With a person who was unaware the conduct was occurring; or
• With a person who could not give consent to the conduct due to being “mentally disabled or deficient.”

Specific Sex Offenses Related to Criminal Deviate Conduct

Indiana law was revised more than ten years ago, and the offense for criminal deviate conduct was repealed. However, the repeal does not mean that the conduct involved in this offense is no longer criminalized. Rather, Indiana criminal law was amended so that offenses once charged under the deviate conduct statute could be charged under other sex crime statutes, including but not limited to the specific offenses of:

• Rape;
• Child molesting;
• Sexual battery; and
• Sexual misconduct with a minor.

If you are now facing charges for any of the above, it is critical to begin working with a criminal defense lawyer as soon as possible.

Contact an Indianapolis Sex Crime Defense Attorney Today for Help with Your Case

While you cannot currently face charges for criminal deviate conduct in Indiana, various offenses that can be charged include elements of the older criminal deviate conduct offense. If you are facing any type of criminal charges in Indiana, especially charges for a sex crime involving a juvenile victim, it is essential to know that you could be facing a serious felony conviction, prison time, and lifelong repercussions involving sex offender registration. It is important to do everything you can to avoid a conviction, and one of the experienced Indianapolis sex crime defense attorneys at Rigney Law LLC can assist you with your defense. Our firm can work with you to develop a defense strategy that is tailored to the specific facts surrounding your arrest and the particular charges you are facing. Contact our firm today for more information.

Sources: 

law.justia.com/codes/indiana/title-35/article-42/chapter-4/