720 ILCS 5/11-1.20 – Criminal Sexual Assault
This law makes it a crime to force someone into sexual activity or to take advantage of someone who cannot consent.
This law says a person commits criminal sexual assault if they perform sexual acts by force, threats, or on someone who cannot give consent, or if an adult misuses trust or family relationships with a minor. The penalties are serious and increase for repeat offenders.
(a) A person commits criminal sexual assault if they perform sexual penetration and:
- Use force or threaten to use force;
- Know that the victim cannot understand what is happening or cannot give consent;
- Are a family member of the victim, and the victim is under 18 years old; or
- Are 17 years old or older, hold a position of trust, authority, or supervision over the victim, and the victim is between 13 and 17 years old.
(b) Sentence:
- Normally, criminal sexual assault is a Class 1 felony. But in certain cases, the punishment is more severe:
- Sentence: If someone is convicted of force-based sexual assault (from section (a)(1) or (a)(2)) and has been convicted before for a similar sexual assault or child exploitation crime, it becomes a Class X felony. The prison term is between 30 and 60 years, unless the person was under 18 at the time of the crime, in which case special youth sentencing rules apply. The new offense must happen after the previous conviction.
- Sentence: If the person was 18 or older during the offense and had been convicted before for a more serious sexual assault (like aggravated or predatory sexual assault), they must serve life in prison. If the offender was under 18 when it happened, different youth sentencing rules apply.
- Sentence: A second or later conviction for the other types of criminal sexual assault (in section (a)(3) or (a)(4)) also becomes a Class X felony.
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