Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505 (2026)
Sexual battery
✓ current as of May 2026
- (a) Sexual battery is unlawful sexual contact with a victim by the defendant or the defendant by a victim accompanied by any of the following circumstances:
- (1) Force or coercion is used to accomplish the act;
- (2) The sexual contact is accomplished without the consent of the victim and the defendant knows or has reason to know at the time of the contact that the victim did not consent;
- (3) The defendant knows or has reason to know that the victim is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated or physically helpless; or
- (4) The sexual contact is accomplished by fraud.
- (b) As used in this section, "coercion" means the threat of kidnapping, extortion, force or violence to be performed immediately or in the future.
- (c) For purposes of this section, a victim is incapable of consent if:
- (1) The sexual contact with the victim occurs during the course of a consultation, examination, ongoing treatment, therapy, or other provision of professional services described in subdivision (c)(2); and
- (2) The defendant, whether licensed by the state or not, is a member of the clergy, healthcare professional, or alcohol and drug abuse counselor who was treating the victim for a mental, emotional, or physical condition.
- (d) Sexual battery is a Class E felony.
Amended by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 509, s 1, eff. 7/1/2021.
Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 1; 1995, ch. 484, § 2; 1996, ch. 675, § 74; 1997 , ch. 256, § 3; 1997 , ch. 406, § 3; 2005, ch. 353, § 12.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 114
cases (10 in the last 5 years), 1992–2025 · leading case: State v. Johnson, 53 S.W.3d 628 (Tenn. 2001).
State v. Johnson, 53 S.W.3d 628 (Tenn. 2001). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505. Simply stated, the elements of sexual battery are (a) sexual contact; (b) with a victim by the defendant or the defendant by the victim; (c) accompanied by one of the circumstances listed as 1-3 above.”
State v. Scarborough, 201 S.W.3d 607 (Tenn. 2006). “…in § 39-6-113. If a person convicted of violating or attempting to violate § 39-13-502, § 39-13-503, § 39-13-504, § 39-13-505, § 39-13-522, § 39-15-302, or § 40-35-321 [sic], and committed to the custody of the commissioner of correction for a term of imprisonment, does…”
State v. Taylor, 63 S.W.3d 400 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2001). “See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(2) (1997). Unlawful sexual contact “includes the intentional touching of the victim’s, the defendant’s, or any other person’s intimate parts, or the intentional touching of the clothing covering the immediate area of the .”
State v. McCary, 922 S.W.2d 511 (Tenn. 1996). “The current sexual battery statute is codified at Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505 (Supp. 1995).”
State v. Mixon, 983 S.W.2d 661 (Tenn. 1999). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505 21 and § 39-13-501 22 (1997 Repl.”
State v. Howard, 926 S.W.2d 579 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505 (1991). While the defendant does not dispute the fact that he was in the tent, he contends that there was insufficient proof that his actions were intentional due to his intoxicated state.”
State of Tennessee v. Allen Doane, 393 S.W.3d 721 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2011). “See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505. The trial court imposed a two-year sentence for each count and ordered all four counts to be served consecutively, for an effective sentence of eight years.”
State v. Boston, 938 S.W.2d 435 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996). “The appellant's convictions for sexual battery, Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505 (1991), fall within the excluded offenses.”
State v. Hallock, 875 S.W.2d 285 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1993). “T.C.A. § 39-13-505. 11 . T.C.A. § 39-13-506.”
State v. Schaller, 975 S.W.2d 313 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1997). “Rather, the indictment charges sexual battery, a Class E felony, under T.C.A. §§ 39-13-505 (1991) and 39-13-503(a)(2) (1991), which prohibit unlawful sexual contact with a person that the defendant knew or had reason to know was mentally defective.”
State v. McKnight, 900 S.W.2d 36 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1994). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a). Those circumstances include sexual contact (1) by force or coercion; (2) by fraud; or (3) by act against the mentally defective, mentally incapacitated, or physically helpless.”
State of Tennessee v. Fred Chad Clark, II, 452 S.W.3d 268 (Tenn. 2014). “§ 39-13-501(6), defines the term “sexual contact:” As used in §§ 39-13-501 — 39-13-511, except as specifically provided in § 39-13-505, unless the context otherwise requires: [[Image here]] (6) “Sexual contact” includes the intentional touching of the victim’s, the defendant’s,…”
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(1) — 1 case
State of Tennessee v. Gregory Scott Payne (Tenn. Crim. App. 2002).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a) — 8 cases
State v. Johnson, 53 S.W.3d 628 (Tenn. 2001). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505. Simply stated, the elements of sexual battery are (a) sexual contact; (b) with a victim by the defendant or the defendant by the victim; (c) accompanied by one of the circumstances listed as 1-3 above.”
State v. Scarborough, 201 S.W.3d 607 (Tenn. 2006). “…in § 39-6-113. If a person convicted of violating or attempting to violate § 39-13-502, § 39-13-503, § 39-13-504, § 39-13-505, § 39-13-522, § 39-15-302, or § 40-35-321 [sic], and committed to the custody of the commissioner of correction for a term of imprisonment, does…”
State v. McKnight, 900 S.W.2d 36 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1994). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a). Those circumstances include sexual contact (1) by force or coercion; (2) by fraud; or (3) by act against the mentally defective, mentally incapacitated, or physically helpless.”
State of Tennessee v. Jerry Louis Fitzgerald, Jr. (Tenn. Crim. App. 2022).
State v. Gasaway (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(1) — 10 cases
State of Tennessee v. Mahlon Johnson (Tenn. Crim. App. 2013).
State of Tennessee v. Warren Smith (Tenn. Crim. App. 2020).
State of Tennessee v. Edward Rudolph Wyse, Jr. (Tenn. Crim. App. 2020).
State of Tennessee v. Randy Keith Wallace (Tenn. Crim. App. 2012).
State of Tennessee v. Adrian Leroy Scott (Tenn. Crim. App. 2012).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(2) — 7 cases
State v. Taylor, 63 S.W.3d 400 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2001). “See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(2) (1997). Unlawful sexual contact “includes the intentional touching of the victim’s, the defendant’s, or any other person’s intimate parts, or the intentional touching of the clothing covering the immediate area of the .”
State of Tennessee v. Cory Lamont Batey (Tenn. Crim. App. 2019).
State of Tennessee v. Nasir Hakeem (Tenn. Crim. App. 2013).
State of Tennessee v. Deangelo Norton (Tenn. Crim. App. 2017).
State of Tennessee v. Phillip Eugene Johnson (Tenn. Crim. App. 2007).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(3) — 1 case
State of Tennessee v. Randall Vertis Grainger (Tenn. Crim. App. 2002).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(a)(4) — 1 case
State of Tennessee v. Randall Vertis Grainger (Tenn. Crim. App. 2002).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(b) — 4 cases
State of Tennessee v. Zachary Michael Johnson (Tenn. Crim. App. 2017).
State of Tennessee v. Jerry Louis Fitzgerald, Jr. (Tenn. Crim. App. 2022).
State v. Gasaway (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998).
State v. Nicholas Williams (Tenn. Crim. App. 2000).
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-505(c) — 2 cases
State v. Turner, 41 S.W.3d 663 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2000).
State of Tennessee v. Troy Jones (Tenn. Crim. App. 2019).
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