Supreme Court of Minnesota
State of Minnesota v. Juan Manuel Ortega-Rodriguez
December 5, 2018920 N.W.2d 642
Summary
The court held that the first-degree criminal-sexual-conduct statute requires the State to prove sexual penetration when charging under subdivision 1(h), including subdivision 1(h)(iii). Because the State conceded that Ortega-Rodriguez did not sexually penetrate the victim, the court rejected the conviction's statutory basis, reversed the court of appeals, and remanded for further proceedings. The court also concluded that applying the statute's plain language did not produce an absurd result.