Oklahoma City Sexual Assault Lawyer
Were you or a loved one sexually assaulted in Oklahoma City, OK? Even if your attacker is held liable in criminal court, you may also be entitled to financial compensation. An experienced Oklahoma City sexual assault lawyer at McGuire Law Firm can help you fight to recover compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and your physical and emotional pain and suffering.
Our lawyers have over 60 years of combined experience handling complicated personal injury law matters. We’ve successfully helped injured clients recover millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts over the years.
We know how much is at stake–and we know that you’re struggling. Contact our law offices in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma at (405) 513-5658 to schedule a free consultation with a lawyer who can help.
How McGuire Law Firm Can Help If I Was Sexually Assaulted in Oklahoma City
Sexual assault is a horrifying crime that can leave you struggling with painful physical injuries. The emotional trauma of the experience can be overwhelming. You deserve all of the justice that the law can offer.
Victims are typically most concerned with securing a criminal conviction against the attacker. While your attacker deserves punishment, that won’t help you pay the bills while you recover. An Oklahoma City personal injury attorney can help you pursue financial compensation to help you get back on your feet again.
Experience matters in these cases. At McGuire Law Firm, our founding attorney has been recognized as an Oklahoma Super Lawyer and a National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyer. Our firm has also earned an AV-Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell.
When you hire us, our lawyers will:
- Investigate to determine whether a third party can be held liable for damages
- Gather evidence to support your personal injury claim
- With the help of experts, calculate the value of your case
- Negotiate fiercely with the insurance companies on your behalf
Call or use our online contact form to schedule a free case review with our Oklahoma City personal injury lawyers and learn more about our practice areas.
How Common is Sexual Assault in Oklahoma City?
Sexual assault is a serious problem in the United States. Statistics show that someone is sexually assaulted in the U.S. every 68 seconds.
Violent crime rates in Oklahoma are higher than the national average. A total of 4,532 forcible sex offenses were reported across the state of Oklahoma in 2021.
Those Oklahoma sex crimes included:
- 1,751 cases of forcible rape
- 409 cases of forcible sodomy
- 240 cases of sexual assault with an object
- 2,132 cases of forcible fondling
- 200 non-forcible sex offenses
Unfortunately, the vast majority of sexual assaults are not reported to the police. Even when the victim reports the crime to law enforcement, most perpetrators of sexual assault do not serve time in prison.
Overview of Sexual Assault Laws in Oklahoma
Sexual assault is a crime in Oklahoma. If caught, the attacker can be charged with a sex crime. They’ll face a lengthy prison sentence, sex offender registration requirements, and additional penalties.
Sexual assault is also an intentional tort. Criminal courts are dedicated to punishing people who commit crimes. In civil cases, the remedy for an intentional tort is financial compensation. Even if your attacker is never convicted of a crime, you may be entitled to recover compensation in civil court.
It’s also possible that someone other than your attacker can be financially accountable for your damages. If someone else’s negligence allowed the attack to occur, you can seek compensation from that negligent party under Oklahoma premises liability laws.
How Do I Prove I Deserve Financial Compensation If I Was Sexually Assaulted in Oklahoma?
If your attacker is located, they can be held liable for compensation if you can prove that the assault occurred by a “preponderance of the evidence.” This standard is lower than the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard that applies in criminal cases. It means that you must prove it is “more likely than not true” that your attacker was guilty of sexual assault.
In other words, you may be entitled to hold your attacker liable in civil court even if they were acquitted in the criminal case.
Can Someone Other Than My Attacker Be Held Liable for My Damages?
When people are negligent, they can be held financially liable when others are injured. That’s true even if they didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt.
When someone is “negligent,” it means that:
- They owed you a legal duty of care
- They breached the duty of care
- The breach caused the damages you suffered because it allowed the attack to happen
Under Oklahoma premises liability laws, business owners have a legal duty to keep their property reasonably safe for customers and other invited visitors. That includes providing adequate security to protect against violent crimes that are reasonably foreseeable. If the assault occurred on someone else’s property, the property owner may be liable for damages.
You may have a valid personal injury case against:
- Colleges, schools, and universities
- Landlords and rental apartment complexes
- Bars and restaurants
- Nightclubs
- Property owners
- Hotels
- Hospitals
- Nursing homes
- Cruise ships
- Sports and entertainment venues
- Your attacker’s employer
- Government entities
What amounts to “adequate security” varies from case to case. It can depend on prior criminal activity in the neighborhood, the type of business involved, and the types of customers who are attracted to the business.
A negligent security case can be based on a business owner’s failure to:
- Fix broken locks
- Install fences or gates
- Hire security guards
- Respond to security alarms
- Train employees to respond to violent situations
- Provide adequate lighting
Do you have questions about your legal right to compensation after an attack? Contact our Oklahoma City sexual assault attorneys at McGuire Law Firm for a free initial consultation today.
What is My Oklahoma City Sexual Assault Case Worth?
When a traumatizing sexual assault is involved, it can be particularly challenging to assign a dollar value to the resulting injuries. Still, it’s important to understand how much your personal injury case is worth before accepting a settlement offer.
The value of your injury claim will depend heavily on:
- The type of injuries you have suffered
- The identity of the responsible party
- The nature of the defendant’s actions and legal defense
- The cost of your medical treatment
- The emotional trauma of the attack
- The physical pain you have endured
- How the attack and injuries will change your life
- The amount of time you miss at work
- Whether you can return to work in the same capacity
Our lawyers serving Oklahoma City will carefully examine these and other factors when we’re assessing your case value. We’ll even bring in experts to help with the more sensitive and complex aspects of the valuation process.
What Types of Compensation Are Available To Victims of Sexual Assault?
Like any car accident victim, victims of sexual assault can seek compensation for economic and non-economic losses.
Examples of the types of damages you may have suffered include:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning potential
- Physical therapy
- Rehabilitation
- Counseling
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Fear
- PTSD
- Shame and humiliation
- Damage to your quality of life
- Physical disfigurement and scarring
- Depression
- Anxiety disorders
- Damage to personal relationships
Oklahoma courts may also award punitive damages in cases involving intentional violence. If your attacker is caught, our lawyers will seek punitive damages as punishment for their shocking and intentional acts.
Our Oklahoma City Sexual Assault Attorneys Will Fight To Recover Compensation for All of Your Injuries
Sexual abuse can result in a wide range of injuries.
At McGuire Law Firm, our attorneys often represent clients who are suffering with:
- Broken bones
- Genital injuries
- Pelvic injuries
- Cuts and lacerations
- Internal bleeding
- Soft tissue damage
- Sexually transmitted diseases
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Head and neck injuries
- Concussions
- Back injuries
- Organ damage
- Unwanted pregnancy
- Paralysis
- Catastrophic injuries
- Wrongful death of a loved one
Victims of sexual assault often suffer significant emotional distress after an attack. Our lawyers in Oklahoma City will also fight to recover fair compensation for the non-physical damage caused by being sexually assaulted.
How Long Do I Have To File a Civil Lawsuit If I Was Sexually Assaulted in Oklahoma?
The statute of limitations in Oklahoma personal injury cases is just two years. Beginning on the date of the sexual battery, you have two years to build your case and file a personal injury lawsuit. Once two years pass, you forfeit your right to seek compensation.
It’s possible that you could have additional time to take legal action against your attacker. While the criminal defense is ongoing, the statute of limitations is tolled–or paused–until the criminal matter is resolved.
Contact an Oklahoma City Sexual Assault Lawyer for a Free Consultation
Our lawyers at McGuire Law Firm know that things can be overwhelming if you were sexually assaulted. We’re here to help you get justice in any way that we can. Contact our legal team today to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Oklahoma City sexual assault lawyer.
