What is the Difference Between Sexual Assault and Sexual Abuse in Illinois? Attorneys Christopher Combs and Joshua Boardman from Combs Waterkotte discuss everything you need to know about Illinois sex crime charges, including sexual assault, sexual abuse, rape, and more.
Combs Waterkotte is a leading criminal defense law firm serving Illinois and Missouri. Our Illinois defense attorneys will fight for your freedom and rights. If you are facing charges in Chicago, Cook County, or anywhere across Illinois, we can help. Call us at (312) 500-HELP 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Interview Transcript
Scott Michael Dunn: What is the difference between sexual assault and sexual abuse in Illinois?
Joshua Boardman: Whenever someone is charged with sexual abuse or it falls within an abuse classification, it’s looking more at the conduct. Is that the way the law evaluates it or the way that a state’s attorney will evaluate what to charge? Something along the lines of fondling or something like that. It’s unwanted conduct. Abuse typically does not rise to that level of any sort of penetrative actions or anything like that. So, that would be the differentiation between the charging statutes.
