California Penal Code 287: Penalties, Registration, and Defenses

California Penal Code 287 is the state’s statute against oral copulation committed under prohibited circumstances: by force or threat, against a person who cannot legally consent, or with a minor. Depending on which subsection applies, a conviction can range from a misdemeanor with up to a year in county jail to a felony carrying 14 years in state prison, and sentencing enhancements under California’s one-strike law can push the term to life. Consensual oral copulation between adults is not a crime; the statute reaches only the specific situations it lists.

What the Law Covers

Under subsection (a), oral copulation means contact between the mouth of one person and the sexual organ or anus of another.¹ California’s jury instructions clarify that the contact can be “however slight” and that penetration is not required.² The physical act alone is not the offense. Prosecutors must also prove one of the prohibited circumstances in the statute, and that circumstance determines both how the case is charged and how long the sentence runs.

Prohibited Circumstances and Their Penalties

Force, Threats, or Coercion

Oral copulation accomplished against the victim’s will through force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate bodily injury is a straight felony punishable by three, six, or eight years in state prison.¹ The prosecution must prove the act happened, that the other person did not consent, and that the defendant used one of those coercive means.³

A separate provision covers threats of future retaliation rather than immediate force. If there is a reasonable possibility the defendant would carry out the threat, the term is the same three, six, or eight years. The jury instructions define retaliation threats broadly, including threats to kidnap, confine, or inflict serious injury or death.³

Unconscious or Intoxicated Victims

Oral copulation on someone who is unconscious of the nature of the act, when the defendant knows that, is a felony carrying three, six, or eight years. “Unconscious” covers more than being physically asleep; it includes being unaware the act is happening or being deceived about what is occurring.

A separate subsection reaches victims who cannot resist because of an intoxicating, anesthetic, or controlled substance, with the same three, six, or eight year term. The prosecution does not need to prove the defendant supplied the substance. It is enough that the defendant knew or should have known the victim was too impaired to consent.

Victims With Disabilities

When a victim cannot legally consent because of a mental disorder, developmental disability, or physical disability, and the defendant knew or should have known about that incapacity, the offense carries three, six, or eight years in state prison. A narrower version applies when both the defendant and the victim are confined in a state hospital or approved mental health treatment facility; that version is a wobbler, meaning the prosecutor can charge it as either a misdemeanor (up to one year in county jail) or a felony.

Minors

Age-based violations carry penalties that scale with the gap between the parties:

Oral copulation with any person under 18 is a wobbler, punishable by up to one year in county jail or by a state prison term.
When the defendant is over 21 and the victim is under 16, the offense is a straight felony with no misdemeanor option.
When the victim is under 14 and the defendant is at least 10 years older, the term is three, six, or eight years in state prison.
When force is used against a victim under 14, the term rises to eight, ten, or twelve years.
When force is used against a minor 14 or older, the term is six, eight, or ten years.

A 19-year-old with a 17-year-old sits in a very different place in this scheme than a 30-year-old with a 13-year-old, and the age gap is what moves the case between those extremes.

Custodial Settings

Oral copulation committed while the defendant is confined in a state prison or local detention facility is a wobbler, punishable by state prison or up to a year in county jail. That treatment applies regardless of whether the other party appears to consent, because the power dynamics inside a correctional setting make genuine consent legally questionable.

Acting in Concert

When two or more people act together, whether one commits the act while another assists or both participate, penalties climb above what a single defendant would face:

Force or threats against an adult victim: five, seven, or nine years.
Force against a victim under 14: ten, twelve, or fourteen years.
Force against a minor 14 or older: eight, ten, or twelve years.

Aiding and abetting is enough. You do not have to be the person who physically committed the act to face these enhanced terms.

One-Strike Enhancements

California’s one-strike sentencing law under Penal Code 667.61 can replace the ordinary PC 287 term with a life sentence when certain aggravating circumstances are present. The one-strike law applies to oral copulation by force, by threat, and in concert.⁴

When one listed circumstance is present, such as kidnapping, burglary, tying or binding the victim, or administering a controlled substance, the sentence becomes 15 years to life. When two or more are present, it becomes 25 years to life. For offenses committed by force against a minor 14 or older, the most serious combination of circumstances can carry life without the possibility of parole. These enhancements must be specifically alleged in the charging document and proven to the jury; the judge cannot add them after the fact.

Fines and Restitution

PC 287 itself does not set a fine amount. The caps come from California’s general sentencing provisions: up to $1,000 for a misdemeanor⁵ and up to $10,000 for a felony where the statute does not prescribe its own fine.⁶

Every felony conviction also triggers a mandatory restitution fine between $300 and $10,000, set by the court based on the seriousness of the offense. If the victim suffered economic losses, the court must additionally order full victim restitution, which can include medical expenses, mental health counseling, and lost wages, both the victim’s own and wages lost by a parent caring for a minor victim.⁷ The court can order interest on the restitution at 10 percent per year from the date of sentencing.

Sex Offender Registration

A conviction under any subsection of PC 287 triggers mandatory sex offender registration under Penal Code 290.⁸ California uses a three-tier system, and the tier depends on the specific subsection of conviction.

Tier 1 (minimum 10 years): oral copulation with a minor under 18, while confined in a correctional facility, by false impersonation, or under color of authority.
Tier 2 (minimum 20 years): oral copulation with a victim under 14 who is 10 or more years younger, by threat of future retaliation, or with a victim incapable of consenting due to a disability.
Tier 3 (lifetime): oral copulation by force, while acting in concert, with an unconscious victim, or with a victim impaired by an intoxicating substance. A person already on the registry who commits a new violent and registerable felony also lands in Tier 3.

Registration requires reporting your residential address and employment information to local law enforcement within five working days of moving into any city or county. Failing to register or to update that information is itself a criminal offense.

Tier 1 and Tier 2 registrants can petition the superior court for removal after completing their minimum period. The petition must include proof of current registration and is served on both local law enforcement and the district attorney.⁹ If the registering agency confirms the person has met all requirements, has no pending charges that could affect tier status, and is not in custody or on supervision, the court can grant the petition without a hearing. The district attorney can request a hearing within 60 days. Tier 3 registrants have no petition option.

Statute of Limitations

California has eliminated the filing deadline entirely for many of the most serious PC 287 violations. Oral copulation by force, with an unconscious victim, with an intoxicated victim, or while acting in concert can be prosecuted at any time, for offenses committed on or after January 1, 2017. For earlier conduct, the old limitations period must not have already expired as of that date.

When the victim was under 18 at the time of the offense, prosecutors generally have until the victim’s 40th birthday to file. If all other deadlines have passed, a complaint can still be filed within one year of the date the victim first reports the crime to a California law enforcement agency, but only when the offense involved substantial sexual conduct and independent evidence corroborates the allegation.

Defenses That Fit the Charge

Which defenses are available depends on which subsection is charged.

Consent. For charges involving adult victims under the force or coercion subsections, the central question is whether the other person consented. Showing a consensual encounter with no force, threats, or incapacity defeats the charge. Consent is not a defense to any charge involving a minor; a person under 18 cannot legally consent.

Reasonable mistake about age. For most minor subsections, the defendant may argue a genuine and reasonable belief that the other person was 18 or older. Supporting evidence can include the minor’s own statements about their age, physical appearance, and context, such as meeting at a venue that checks identification. This defense is not available for the most serious age-based charges, where the victim is under 14 and the defendant is 10 or more years older.

False accusation. Sex-offense allegations often arise from relationships that have broken down, from custody disputes, or from other circumstances that give an accuser a motive to lie. The defense investigation typically focuses on alibi evidence, inconsistencies in the accuser’s statements over time, and communications between the parties.

Insufficient evidence. The prosecution carries the burden of proving every element beyond a reasonable doubt. If the case rests on the accuser’s testimony with no corroboration, especially when significant time passed before the report, credibility becomes the battleground.

Collateral Consequences

The sentence and registration requirements are not the end of the picture. A PC 287 conviction creates lasting problems that outlast the prison term.

Firearms

Any felony conviction under PC 287 triggers a lifetime federal ban on possessing, shipping, or receiving firearms or ammunition. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), it is illegal for anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment to possess a firearm.¹⁰ This federal prohibition applies regardless of any state outcome, and violating it is a separate federal felony.

Immigration

For non-citizens, a PC 287 conviction can be devastating. Federal immigration authorities classify most sex offenses as crimes involving moral turpitude, which can bar admission to the United States and serve as grounds for deportation.¹¹ Forcible oral copulation may also qualify as an aggravated felony under federal immigration law, which carries mandatory deportation with almost no relief available. Non-citizens facing PC 287 charges should consult an immigration attorney before entering any plea; even a misdemeanor conviction can trigger removal proceedings.

Housing

Federal regulations permanently bar individuals subject to lifetime sex offender registration from admission to public housing and Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) programs. A public housing authority must deny the application of anyone required to register for life under their state’s law at the time of application.¹² Under California’s tier system, Tier 3 registrants face lifetime registration and therefore a permanent ban from federally assisted housing. Tier 1 and Tier 2 registrants are not automatically barred by this federal rule, though individual housing authorities may apply their own screening criteria.

1
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 287 – Oral Copulation
2
Justia. CALCRIM No. 1082 – Oral Copulation With Person Under 18
3
Justia. CALCRIM No. 1015 – Oral Copulation by Force, Fear, or Threats
4
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 667.61
5
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 19
6
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 672
7
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.4
8
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 290 – Sex Offender Registration Act
9
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 290.5
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
11
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Conditional Bars for Acts in Statutory Period
12
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. State Registered Lifetime Sex Offenders in the Housing Choice Voucher and Public Housing Programs FAQ