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Name: In re Shannon T.
Case #: C052035
Court: CA Court of Appeal
District 3 DCA
Opinion Date: 11/01/2006
Summary

The 14-year-old minor slapped a 16-year-old girl and pinched her breast, leaving a large purple bruise. The evidence showed that the minor and the girl had been friends and had previously engaged in playful hitting. Following his conviction for sexual battery, the minor contended on appeal that he had been “playing around” and that there was insufficient evidence that he touched the victim for the purpose of sexual arousal, abuse, or gratification, which is an element of sexual battery. The appellate court rejected the argument and affirmed. The statute’s use of the word sexual abuse encompasses a purpose of insulting, humiliating, or physically harming a person sexually by touching an intimate part of the person, including a breast. There was substantial evidence that the minor acted with the requisite purpose.