Who Are The Victims?

• According to the US Department of Justice, one person is raped every 2.7 minutes in the United States. 

• 1 out of every 6 American women have been the victims of an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime (14.8% completed rape; 2.8% attempted rape).

• 1 in 33 American men have experienced an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime.

• 73% of rapes/sexual assaults were perpetrated by someone known to the victim (a non-stranger).
  • 38% of are a friend or acquaintance.
  • 28% are an intimate.

  • 7% are a relative.   

• More than half of rape/sexual assault incidents were reported by victims to have occurred within 1 mile of their home or at their home.   

• In 2005, victims age 12 or older experienced 191,670 rapes/sexual assaults.   

• 15% of sexual assault and rape victims are under the age of 12. 

• 44% of sexual assault and rape victims are under age 18.  

• In 2005, 62% of all rapes and sexual assaults were not reported to law enforcement.  

• People ages 16 to 19 had a higher rate of sexual victimization of any age group.  

• 66% of all prostitutes were sexually abused as children.

• A review of sexual assault cases in an emergency department found that 12% of cases were identified as suspected drug-facilitated cases.

• Girls ages 16-19 are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault.

What Are The Effects Of Rape?

• Victims of sexual assault are 3 times more likely to suffer from depression, 6 times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, 13 times more likely to abuse alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs and 4 times more likely to contemplate suicide.

• In 2004-2005, 64,080 women were raped. According to medical reports, the incidence of pregnancy for one-time unprotected sexual intercourse is 5%. By applying the pregnancy rate to 64,080 women, RAINN estimates that there were 3,204 pregnancies as a result of rape during that period.

• Women who experienced sexual abuse as a child are 2 to 3 times more likely to be sexually assaulted later in life.

References

Arata, C. (2002) Child Sexual Abuse and Sexual Revictimization. Clinical Psychology, 9: 135-164

Margret J. McGregor et al., “An exploratory Analysis of Suspected Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault Seen in a Hospital Emergency Department,” Women and Health 37, no. 3 (2003):

National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women Survey. 1998.

Rape, Abuse and Incest Network (RAINN) RAINN, http://www.rainn.org/get-information/statistics/sexual-assault-victims

Shannan M. Catalano, “Criminal Victimization, 2005,” (Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2005),3.

Silbert, M. “Compounding Factors in the Rape of Street Prostitutes.” Cited in Wolbert-Burgess, A. Rape and Sexual Assault II. Garland Publishing, Inc. New York 1988, p. 77.

US Department of Justice 2005 National Crime Victimization Study, 2005

US Department of Justice Sex Offense and Offenders Study. 1997.