Canadian Criminal Sentencing/Offences/Sexual Interference

Legislation Sexual interference 151. Every person who, for a sexual purpose, touches, directly or indirectly, with a part of the body or with an object, any part of the body of a person under the age of 16 years (a) is guilty of an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 14 yearshttp://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/page-34.html#docCont and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of one year; or (b) is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 18 months and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of 90 days. ... R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 151; R.S., 1985, c. 19 (3rd Supp.), s. 1; 2005, c. 32, s. 3; 2008, c. 6, s. 54; 2012, c. 1, s. 11. CCC Application For general principles for sexual offences see Canadian Criminal Sentencing/Offences/Sexual Offences Principles It is an aggravating factor for the offender to have been in a position of trust. A position of trust is distinctive from a position of authority and will be determined on the specific facts including the conduct of the offender.Audet 1996 CanLII 198 (SCC), [1996] 2 SCR 171 Unless there are exceptional circumstances, the range of sentence for sexual intercourse with a child by a person in a position of trust is 3 to 5 years.R. v. W.W.M., [2006] O.J. No. 440, 2006 CanLII 3262 (ON CA) at para 14 2 Factors Aggravating Factors Youthful age of Victim degree of vulnerability of victim (inarticulate, easily manipulated, disabled) significant gap in age between parties offender in a position of trust or authority to victim manner of interference (attempted acts, kissing, touching outside of clothes, touching inside of clothes, digital penetration, oral sex, full intercourse) number of instances of interference duration of each instance Mitigating Factors Youthful offender guilty plea (early or late, saved resources) prior record (related or unrelated) Ancillary Orders DNA Orders SOIRA Orders (Mandatory) 161 Order Offence-related Probationary Terms No contact with victim No contact with persons under age of 16 Treatment/Counselling No alcohol or drugs (if facts involve them) History On August 9, 2012, the section was amended to increase the penalties from 45 days for indictable and 14 days for summary to one year and 90 days respectively.See Full text of amendments 2 Sexual Interference