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Basic
Facts about Rape & Sexual Assault
What
is sexual assault?
GNESA's
Working/Professional Definition of Sexual Assault:
Sexual
assault is any sexual activity that is against another person's
will including: rape (attempted rape), sodomy/aggravated sodomy,
child molestation, fondling, sexual harassment, indecent exposure,
stalking, peeping toms, sexual battery.
What
is Rape?
Rape
is an act of violence in which sex is used as a weapon. Rape occurs
when a person engages in sexual intercourse by forcible compulsion
or with someone who is incapable of consent.
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Legal
Definition of Rape:
16-6-1
(GCA & 36-2001)
Rape
(a)
A person commits the offense of rape when he has carnal
knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will. Carnal
knowledge in rape occurs when there is any penetration of
the female sex organ by the male organ. The fact that the
person allegedly raped is the wife of the defendant shall
not be a defense to change of rape.
(b)
A person convicted of the offense of rape shall be punished
by death, by imprisonment for life, or by imprisonment for
not less than ten nor more 20 years. Any person convicted
under this Code section shall, in addition, be subject to
the sentencing and punishment provisions of Code Sections
17-10-7
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Rape
Facts
- Rape is
an act of violence, power, and control.
- Rape is
often planned or carried out by intimate partners, acquaintances,
family members, or strangers.
- Rape is
motivated primarily out of anger and/or a need to feel powerful
by controlling, dominating, or humiliating the victim.
- Survivors
are not responsible for causing their assaults; only offenders
are to be blamed for sexual assault and rape.
- Rape is
the fastest growing violent crime in The United States. (Center
for Disease Control and Prevention, 1994)
- In the United
States, a woman is raped every 6 minutes. (Crime Victims Research
and Treatment Center of the National Victims Center, 1992)
- The rate
of sexual assault in the United States is the highest of any industrialized
nation in the world. (Reiso and Roth, 1993)
- 1 in 4 women
will be a victim of sexual violence at some point in her lifetime.
(Warshaw, R. 1988. I Never Called It Rape. Harper and Row).
- 1 in 6 boys
will be sexually assaulted by age 18. (Walker, L. 1988. Handbook
on Sexual Abuse of Children)
- An estimated
92,700 men are forcibly raped each year in the United States.
(Tjaden and Thoennes, 1998)
- 84% of all
rapes are committed by someone known to the victim. (Warsaw,
R. 1988. I Never Called It Rape. Harper and Row)
- 57% of all
sexual assault occur during a date. (Koss, Wodruff, Koss study,
1990)
- Rape remains
the most underreported violent crime in the United States.
(Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center of the National Victims
Center, 1992)
- Women who
are raped by men they know are less likely to report the crime
to the police than women who are raped by strangers. (Bachman,
1994)
- 1 out of
3 high school relationships includes battering or rape. (Creighton,
A., 1990. Helping Teens Stop Violence)
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