General Statistics:

• The United States has the highest rate of sexual assault among industrialized countries in the world ( New Woman magazine, 1991).
• One American is sexually assaulted every two minutes. (NCVS 2002)
• In 2002, there were 247,730 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault. Up to 4,315 pregnancies may have resulted from these attacks. [RAINN calculation based on 2002 NCVS and medical reports].
• Sexual assault survivors range in age from under six months old to over 91 (FBI, 1996).
• The average sexual assault can last up to 2-4 hours (Cohen, 1988).
• 68% of rapes happen between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.(U.S. Department of Justice, 1994.)
• 47% of rapes, the victim sustained injuries other than rape injuries. (U.S. Dept. Of Justice, 1994)
• Teenagers 16-19 were more than twice as likely as any other age group to be victims of rape or sexual assault, similar to previous years’ figures. People age 12-15 and 20-24 are also in high-risk groups; after age 24, the rate of attacks steadily declines. (NCVS 2002)
• From 2000-2002, an average of 46.8% of rape victims reported the attack to police, up from an average of 30.8% from 1993-1995.
• About 12.8% of victims were male, higher than in previous years, but women were nearly seven times more likely to be victims than men. (NCVS 2002)

Female Victims of Sexual Assault:

• One out of every six American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime (14.8% completed rape; 2.8% attempted rape). A total of 17.7 million women have been victims of these crimes. [Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Womenen Survey, National Institute of Justice and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1998.]
• It is estimated that only one-third to one-tenth of female victims reports the assault (NCVS 1997)
• Female victims of crime are more likely to be seriously injured by someone they know than by a stranger ( Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1996).

Male Victims of Sexual Assault:

• Less than two percent of male victims report the assault (McMullen, 1990) .
• The majority of assailants and victims in these cases were heterosexual (Donaldson, 1990).
• About three percent of American men - a total of 2.78 million men—have experienced an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime. [Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women 1998.]
• In 2002, one in every eight rape victims were male. [NCVS 2002]
• The average age of adult male victims is 17 years old (National Victim Center, 1995).
• 50% of offenders indicated that the gender of the victim was not significant (Groth & Burgess).
• Porter (1986) indicates that male victims are more likely than female victims to be assaulted by more than one assailant, have weapons displayed and used, and suffer serious injuries.

Campus Sexual Assault:

• Every 21 hours there is a sexual assault on a U.S. college campus ( USA Today, 1990).
• A woman is most likely to be assaulted in the first 6 weeks of her freshman year.
• Nearly 3 percent of college women experienced a completed or attempted rape during the college year, according to a new justice department report.
• 75-90% of all sexual assaults on campus are alcohol or drug-related (Warshaw, 1988; Califano).
• 1 in 12 male college students surveyed had committed acts that met the legal definition of rape. 84% of these men said that what they had done was definitely not rape (Koss, 1988) .
• 16% of male students who had committed rape took part in episodes with more than one assailant, otherwise known as gang rape (Malamuth, 1986; Koss, 1988).
• Of the incidents of sexual victimization, the vast majority occurred after 6 p.m. in living quarters. Nearly 60 percent that took place on campus occurred in the victim's residence, 31 percent occurred in living quarters on campus and 10% at a fraternity.
• Nearly 90 percent of the victims knew the offender, who was usually a classmate, friend, ex-boyfriend or acquaintance.
• According to RDVIC 2-3 women call each week due to sexual assaults in Morgantown.

Convicting Rape:

• Approximately 10% of US State inmates are sex offenders (BJS, 1997).
• Less than 1 in 100 rapists will be convicted, and less than 5% go to jail ( USA Today, 1990).
• Male students are rarely prosecuted. Only an estimated 1% is prosecuted ( USA Today, 1990).
• In 2001, only 39% of rapes and sexual assaults were reported to law enforcement officials — about one in every three. [1999 NCVS]
• 61% of rapes/sexual assaults are not reported to the police. Those rapists, of course, never serve a day in prison. [1999 NCVS]

Demographics of Serial Rapists:

In a study of 41 convicted serial sex offenders, together responsible for 837 sexual assaults and an additional 400 attempted sexual assaults, the authors (Hazelwood and Warren, 1989) found that:

• 88 % were average or above average intelligence.
• 76 % had been sexually abused.
• 68 % began their criminal careers with “peeping Tom” activities.
• 25 % reported that age, race and gender were insignificant when they selected victims. In about one out of three sexual assaults, the perpetrator was intoxicated—30% with alcohol, 4% with drugs. [Alcohol and Crime. Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1998]
• Rapists are more likely to be serial criminals than serial rapists. In one study, 46% of rapists who were released from prison were rearrested within 3 years of their release for another crime -- 18.6% for a violent offense, 14.8% for a property offense, 11.2% for a drug offense and 20.5% for a public-order offense. [2002 RPR94]

West Virginia State Law:

1. Sexual Assault in the First Degree. (15-35 years in prison and $1,000-$10,000 fine). When someone engages in forced sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion and inflicts serious bodily injury or employs a deadly weapon in the commission of the act. Or an individual over 14 years of age engages in sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion with another person who is 11 years old or less.
   
   
2. Sexual Assault in the Second Degree. (10-25 years in prison and $1,000-$10,000 fine). When someone engages in sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion with another person without that person’s consent and the lack of consent results from forcible compulsion or if the person is physically helpless.
   
   
3. Sexual Assault in the Third Degree. (1-5 years in prison and fined no more than $10,000). When someone engages in sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion with another person who is mentally defective or mentally incapacitated. Or an individual being 16 years or older engages in sexual intercourse or sexual intrusion with someone who is less than 16 years old and who is at least 4 years younger than the defendant.