NCJ Number
244685
Date Published
January 2014
Length
38 pages
Annotation
This report analyzes the most recent, reliable data on rape and sexual assault in the United States.
Abstract
The analysis identifies those most at risk of being victims of these crimes; examines the cost of these offenses both to survivors and their communities; and describes the response of the criminal justice system, which is often inadequate. Data show that women and girls compose the vast majority of victims of rape and sexual assault; nearly one in five women had been raped in their lifetime, and nearly half of female survivors were raped before they were 18. Men and boys are also at risk; one in 71 men had been raped during their lifetime. Women of all races have been victimized, but some are more vulnerable than others; 33.5 percent of multiracial women have been raped, 27 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native women, 15 percent of Hispanic women, 22 percent of Black women, and 19 percent of White women. Repeat victimization is common. Most victims have known their assailants. Nearly 98 percent of perpetrators are male. In addition to the aforementioned data, data are also analyzed for the economic costs of rape and sexual assault, campus sexual assault as a particular problem, and the criminal justice responses. Analysis of the latter topic notes that despite the prevalence of rape and sexual assault, many offenders are neither arrested nor prosecuted. Reasons for this are discussed. Actions being taken at the Federal level to address rape and sexual assault are outlined.