Scottsdale Sex Crimes Lawyer | Felony Sex Crime Defense
Facing a sex-crime accusation in Scottsdale? Under A.R.S. 13-1406 and related statutes, most are felonies in Maricopa County Superior Court with sex-offender registration on the line. Here is how these cases work and how they are defended.
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What Sex Crimes Are Charged in Scottsdale?
A Scottsdale sex crimes lawyer defends people accused of felony sex offenses — sexual assault, child molestation, sexual conduct with a minor, sexual abuse, and exploitation. Nearly all are felonies prosecuted in Maricopa County Superior Court, many carry mandatory prison and lifetime sex-offender registration, and Scottsdale police often investigate quietly before any arrest.
Few accusations upend a life as fast as a sex-crime allegation in Scottsdale. The stakes include years in prison, mandatory sex-offender registration, and lasting damage to your name, family, and career — often before you are ever formally charged. Because most of these offenses are felonies prosecuted by the Maricopa County Attorney in Maricopa County Superior Court, the smartest move is to hire a Scottsdale sex crimes lawyer the moment you suspect you are under investigation. This page is a practice-area overview: the range of charges we defend, how Scottsdale Police build these cases, what registration really means, and the defenses that win. For a single specific offense, follow the links to the dedicated pages below.
With offices in Scottsdale and Phoenix, Tamou Law Group defends the full range of sex-crime allegations — from a first indecent-exposure citation to the most serious felonies involving minors. Whether you are in the pre-arrest investigation stage or preparing for trial, what you do in the first hours can decide everything. For the broader statewide picture, see our Arizona sex crime lawyers hub; for the local process, read what happens after a Scottsdale arrest.
Arizona groups a wide spread of conduct under “sex crimes,” and the label carries enormous weight regardless of which specific statute is charged. The felony class, whether prison is mandatory, and whether registration follows all turn on which offense the State picks — and prosecutors frequently stack multiple counts. Below are the charges we defend most often in Scottsdale, each linking to a dedicated page where relevant.
Scottsdale Sex-Crime Charges We Defend
Primary statute for sexual assault: A.R.S. 13-1406
How Does Scottsdale PD Investigate Sex Crimes?
Quietly, and often for weeks before anyone is arrested. Sex-crime cases are usually built during a discreet investigation, which is what makes them so dangerous — by the time you learn you are a suspect, detectives may already have a file. In many Scottsdale cases, Scottsdale Police Department detectives use recorded pretext or “confrontation” phone calls, forensic interviews, and digital evidence pulled from phones, computers, and social media to assemble the State’s case.
The recorded “confrontation call”
Detectives often arrange a recorded confrontation or pretext call, in which the accuser phones you while police listen and coach, hoping you apologize or say something that sounds like guilt. It is legal and extremely common. If you get an emotional call about a past encounter or relationship, do not argue, apologize, or explain — anything that sounds like an admission becomes the centerpiece of the case. Hang up and call a lawyer before you say another word.
The “come tell your side” interview
A detective who asks to “hear your side” or clear things up is not offering you a chance to fix it — that request is evidence collection. Innocent explanations are routinely reframed as admissions. You have the right to remain silent and to refuse questions without a lawyer present, and using it is not evidence of guilt.
Digital evidence and quiet pre-arrest work
Texts, images, browsing history, and app data are central to most modern sex-crime cases. Detectives subpoena records, seize devices, and set up pretext calls before making an arrest. That is precisely why the investigation stage — not the arraignment — is the moment a defense lawyer matters most. A lawyer brought in early can shield you from tactics designed to build the case, and can sometimes keep charges from ever being filed.
Which Court Handles Scottsdale Sex Crime Cases?
Almost always the Maricopa County Superior Court, not Scottsdale City Court. Because most sex crimes are felonies, they are prosecuted by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office and filed in Superior Court in downtown Phoenix. Only a lower-level misdemeanor — such as a first indecent-exposure citation — would stay in Scottsdale City Court. Knowing where your case is headed shapes the entire defense strategy, from the grand jury stage through pretrial motions and trial.
Many charges involving children are filed as dangerous crimes against children, a sentencing category that for most completed offenses carries mandatory prison with no probation and no early release. When counts are stacked — as they routinely are in exploitation cases, where each image is a separate felony — the exposure can climb into effective life sentences. Because most of these felonies are handled in Superior Court, appearing at every hearing is critical: missing one can trigger a bench warrant. For the broader local process, our guide to Scottsdale criminal defense explains how cases move through the system.
The Sex-Offender Registration Stakes
For many people, registration — not the sentence — is the harshest consequence, because it never ends. Many Arizona sex-crime convictions require registration as a sex offender under A.R.S. 13-3821, and for the most serious offenses that registration is for life. It becomes part of the public record, is searchable by neighbors and employers, and restricts where you can live and work.
Because registration follows the conviction, one of the central goals of the defense is to fight the charge outright — or, where that is not possible, to reduce it to a non-registerable offense. That single distinction can matter more to the rest of your life than the length of any jail term, which is why the charge you plead to must be scrutinized as closely as the facts themselves.
What to Do If You Are Accused of a Sex Crime in Scottsdale
What you do in the first hours can decide the case. Sex-crime investigations are designed to extract statements and evidence from you before you have counsel — so the priority is to say nothing and preserve everything.
Do not talk to detectives without a lawyer
If a Scottsdale Police detective asks to hear your side, politely invoke your right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions without a lawyer present. The interview is not your chance to fix things; it is evidence collection, and innocent explanations are routinely twisted into admissions.
Never take a confrontation call
If the accuser phones you with an emotional message about a past encounter, assume police are listening and coaching. Do not argue, apologize, or explain. Hang up and call a lawyer.
Preserve your devices and digital evidence
Do not delete texts, photos, apps, or accounts, and never wipe a phone or computer — deletion can bring separate tampering charges. But do not consent to any device search without a warrant. Preserve the records that support your account and give everything to your lawyer.
Do not contact the accuser
Any attempt to reach out, apologize, or “work it out” can be used against you and may trigger new charges for harassment or witness tampering, or an order of protection. Let your attorney handle every point of contact.
Follow your lawyer’s advice and attend every hearing
Because most sex crimes are felonies filed in Maricopa County Superior Court, missing a hearing can trigger a bench warrant. Appear at every court date and let your defense team fight the evidence.
What Are the Core Defenses to a Scottsdale Sex Crime?
These cases are more defensible than most people fear, because they are frequently built on an accusation rather than physical proof. The defense attacks each element the State must prove — and the credibility of the evidence behind it.
Challenging a single-witness accusation
A large share of Arizona sex-crime cases are built almost entirely on the accuser’s word, with no DNA, injuries, or medical proof. That means a defense that exposes inconsistencies, a motive to fabricate, or the influence of a bitter divorce or custody dispute can be decisive. False and exaggerated allegations are more common than people assume.
Consent and the facts of the encounter
In an adult sexual-assault case under 13-1406, consent is often the entire dispute. Messages, prior relationship history, and the accuser’s own account over time can undercut the claim that the encounter was non-consensual.
Suppressing an unlawful search
Because digital evidence is central to these cases, how police obtained it matters enormously. If detectives seized or searched your phone or computer without a valid warrant, your consent, or a recognized exception, that evidence can be challenged and suppressed — and suppressing the core exhibit can collapse the case.
Attacking suggestive or coerced interviews
Forensic interviews of children, and confrontation calls with adults, are only as reliable as the way they were conducted. Leading questions, coaching, and suggestive technique can render a statement unreliable and open the door to exclusion or impeachment.
Fighting the charge that triggers registration
Where the facts of the encounter are difficult, the fight often shifts to the charge itself — keeping a felony from becoming a conviction that forces lifetime registration, or negotiating toward a non-registerable offense. The label you plead to can matter more than any other part of the outcome.
The Experts We Bring to the Table
A sex-crime case is an evidence-and-credibility case: what the digital record really shows, whether an interview was reliable, and whether the accusation holds together. We retain the specialists who test each of those.
Digital Forensics Examiners
The Phones & Devices
Independently analyze phone and computer extractions, deleted-file claims, browsing and app data, and metadata the State calls incriminating — challenging authorship, dates, context, and how the evidence was collected.
Police Practices Consultants
How the Stop and Search Were Done
Former law enforcement professionals who measure the stop, entry and search against policy, training and lawful procedure.
Forensic Interview Specialists
Suggestive Questioning
Evaluate child forensic interviews and confrontation calls for leading questions, coaching, and suggestive technique that make a statement unreliable and open it to exclusion or impeachment.
DNA & Forensic Analysts
Testing the Physical Proof
Independently review any DNA, SANE exam, or medical findings — how samples were collected, tested, and interpreted — and expose the gaps when the State claims physical proof it does not have.
False-Allegation & Motive Investigators
Why the Accusation Was Made
Investigate the context behind an accusation — divorce, custody, and personal disputes — and surface the inconsistencies and motives to fabricate that a single-witness case depends on.
Mitigation & Sentencing Specialists
Protecting Your Future
Where the facts are hard, build the treatment, character, and risk-assessment record that supports reducing a charge to a non-registerable offense and limiting sentencing exposure.
How Tamou Law Group Defends Scottsdale Sex Crimes
These cases are won early and on the evidence. From the first call, we work to get ahead of a quiet investigation — shielding you from confrontation calls and detective interviews, putting the State on notice to preserve records, and pinning down exactly how any device was searched while the trail is fresh. We look hard at the pressure points that decide these cases: whether the digital evidence was lawfully obtained, whether an interview was reliable, whether a single accusation holds together, and whether the charge can be kept from triggering lifetime registration.
From there we build toward the outcome that changes everything — suppressing unlawfully seized evidence, exposing a fabricated or inconsistent accusation, or negotiating away the count that forces registration. Our team includes former prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and public defenders who have handled these cases from every side. Call 623-321-4699 for a confidential consultation, or explore the specific charge you are facing on our sexual conduct with a minor and sexual abuse defense pages.
Award-Winning Criminal Defense Law Firm
When you are looking for the best Phoenix sex crime lawyers, these are the independently verified credentials that matter, earned by Founding Attorney Michael Tamou and a full team of attorneys, including former prosecutors, public defenders, and law enforcement.
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Why Tamou Law Group for Sex Crime Charges
A sex-crime allegation is usually one account against another, and the State files first and investigates second. We treat these cases as evidence cases from day one: digital records, forensic interviews, timelines and the gaps between them.
A dismissal on the hardest charge
Our published results include a sexual assault and sexual abuse case dismissed after extensive litigation, and reductions on luring, sexual conduct with a minor, molestation and sexual exploitation charges. These are the cases most firms plead early.
Former prosecutors who charged these cases
Attorneys on our team have worked inside the offices that file sex-crime charges in Arizona. They know how forensic interviews are scored, what a detective needs before a confrontation call, and which weaknesses the State hopes you never notice.
Pre-charge defense
Sex-crime cases often begin with a detective’s call, before any charge exists. That window is where a case is declined, downgraded or filed as alleged, and we have handled that stage from both sides of the table.
Published results in this area
| Case | Charges | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| State v. W.N. | Sexual assault and sexual abuse (A.R.S. 13-1406, 13-1404) | Case dismissed |
| State v. P.J. | Sexual abuse and indecent exposure (13-1404, 13-1402) | Reduced charge |
| State v. N.D. | Luring a minor and attempt (13-3554, 13-1001) | Reduced charge |
| State v. L.B. | Sexual conduct with a minor and attempt (13-1405, 13-1001) | Reduced charge |
| State v. H.V. | Molestation of a child and sexual abuse (13-1410, 13-1404) | Reduced charge |
| State v. V.R. | Sexual exploitation of a minor (13-3553) | Reduced charge |
| State v. G.D. | Indecent exposure and disorderly conduct (13-1402, 13-2904) | Deferred prosecution |
Anonymized outcomes from our case results page. Every case is different; past results do not guarantee a future outcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a sex crime a felony in Arizona?
Almost always, yes. Most Arizona sex offenses, including sexual assault (A.R.S. 13-1406), sexual conduct with a minor (13-1405), child molestation (13-1410), and sexual exploitation of a minor (13-3553), are felonies. Many involving children are charged as dangerous crimes against children, which for most completed offenses carry mandatory prison with no probation. Only a few offenses, such as a first-time indecent exposure, may be misdemeanors.
Which court handles Scottsdale sex crime cases?
Felony sex crimes committed in Scottsdale are prosecuted by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office and filed in Maricopa County Superior Court in downtown Phoenix, not Scottsdale City Court. Only a lower-level misdemeanor, like a first indecent-exposure citation, would stay in Scottsdale City Court. Knowing where your case is headed shapes the entire defense strategy.
What is a confrontation call and what should I do?
A confrontation call, or pretext call, is a recorded phone call in which the accuser contacts you while a Scottsdale detective listens and feeds them questions, hoping you apologize or admit something. It is legal and extremely common in sex-crime investigations. If you get an emotional call about a past relationship, do not engage or apologize — hang up and call a lawyer immediately.
Will I have to register as a sex offender?
Many Arizona sex-crime convictions require registration under A.R.S. 13-3821, and for the most serious offenses that registration is for life. It becomes part of the public record and restricts where you can live and work. Because registration is often the harshest lifelong consequence, fighting the charge, or reducing it to a non-registerable offense, is a central goal of the defense.
Can I be charged with no physical evidence, just an accusation?
Yes. A large share of Arizona sex-crime cases are built almost entirely on the accuser’s word, with no DNA, injuries, or medical proof. Prosecutors can and do file felony charges on testimony alone. That also means a defense exposing inconsistencies, a motive to fabricate, or suggestive interviews can be decisive — false and exaggerated allegations are more common than people think.
I am under investigation but not arrested — do I need a lawyer now?
Yes, and this is the most important time to have one. Scottsdale detectives frequently investigate sex allegations quietly for weeks, gathering digital evidence, subpoenaing records, and setting up pretext calls before any arrest. A lawyer brought in during the investigation stage can shield you from tactics designed to build the case, and sometimes stop charges from ever being filed.
Can police search my phone and computer in a sex crime case?
Only with a valid warrant, your consent, or a recognized exception. Digital evidence — texts, images, browsing and app data — is central to most modern sex-crime cases, which is why you should never consent to a search of your devices. If detectives seized or searched your phone or computer without proper legal authority, that evidence can be challenged and suppressed.
Can a Scottsdale sex crime charge be dismissed or reduced?
Yes. Charges are dismissed or reduced when evidence came from an illegal search, an interview was suggestive or coerced, the accuser’s account is inconsistent, or the State cannot prove an element beyond a reasonable doubt. Early, aggressive defense creates those outcomes, and it can also keep a felony from becoming a conviction that forces lifetime registration. No outcome is ever guaranteed.
Two Arizona Offices, One Team
Our Scottsdale office on Shea Boulevard serves Scottsdale, Paradise Valley and the surrounding East Valley, with free, confidential consultations 24/7 by phone and in-person meetings by appointment. We also meet clients at our Phoenix office.
Case Results Disclaimer: The results described on this page are based on specific facts and circumstances and do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case. Every case is different. Past results do not guarantee future results. No attorney-client relationship is formed by viewing this page or submitting a contact form until a written fee agreement has been signed. Tamou Law Group, PLLC is licensed to practice law in the State of Arizona. This website is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.