In Alabama
- According to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Crime in Alabama 2015 report:
1,988* rapes were reported by county and municipal agencies in Alabama in 2015. This is a 5 percent increase from 2014.
The rape rate was 40.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, both males and females.
863 rapes were cleared for a 43 percent clearance rate.
On the average, there were 5.4 rapes reported per day in 2015.
232 persons were arrested for rape with 12 percent being juveniles.
49 percent of those arrested were white and 97 percent were male.
56 percent of the rape victims in Alabama were white; 30 percent were black, and 14 percent were other or unknown. 23 percent of all rape victims were 13-, 14-, 15- and 16-year-olds.
In 79 percent of the rapes, the victim and offender knew or were related to each other; in 4 percent, the victim and offender were strangers, and in 17 percent, the relationship was unknown.
44 percent of the rapes involved a white victim and white offender, 10 percent, a white victim and black offender, 28 percent, a black victim and black offender, 4 percent, a black victim and white offender. In 14 percent, the race of the offender was unknown or other.
In 81 percent of the rapes, hands, fists and/or verbal threats were used to exert force upon a victim; guns were used in 3 percent, and knives in 2 percent of the rapes.
75 percent of the rapes occurred in a residence; 5 percent in a highway, street or alley; 3 percent in a hotel or motel; and 3 percent in a field or woods. - *Data reported in this publication represents rapes collected under the new definition used for 2013 reporting. Rape is the forcible sexual assault of a male or female victim, including attempts. The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program has expanded the definition of rape for reports submitted beginning in 2013 to include male and female victims and other forms of sexual assault. Prior to 2013, Rape was the forcible carnal knowledge of a female victim only, and did not include sodomy offenses.
Crime in Alabama 2015. (2016). Retrieved 2017, from https://www.alea.gov/Documents/Documents/CrimeInAlabama-2015.pdf
The United States of America
- One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives.
46.4% lesbians, 74.9% bisexual women and 43.3% heterosexual women reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes, while 40.2% gay men, 47.4% bisexual men and 20.8% heterosexual men reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes.
Nearly one in 10 women has been raped by an intimate partner in her lifetime, including completed forced penetration, attempted forced penetration or alcohol/drug-facilitated completed penetration. Approximately one in 45 men has been made to penetrate an intimate partner during his lifetime.
91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female, and 9% are male.
In eight out of 10 cases of rape, the victim knew the person who sexually assaulted them
8% of rapes occur while the victim is at work - Cost and Impact:
Each rape costs approximately $151,423
Annually, rape costs the U.S. more than any other crime ($127 billion), followed by assault ($93 billion), murder ($71 billion), and drunk driving ($61 billion)
81% of women and 35% of men report significant short-term or long-term impacts such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Health care is 16% higher for women who were sexually abused as children
Campus Sexual Assault:
One in 5 women and one in 16 men are sexually assaulted while in college
More than 90% of sexual assault victims on college campuses do not report the assault
63.3% of men at one university who self-reported acts qualifying as rape or attempted rape admitted to committing repeat rapes
Crime Reports and False Reporting:
Rape is the most under-reported crime; 63% of sexual assaults are not reported to police. Only 12% of child sexual abuse is reported to the authorities
The prevalence of false reporting is between 2% and 10%. For example, a study of eight U.S. communities, which included 2,059 cases of sexual assault, found a 7.1% rate of false reports. A study of 136 sexual assault cases in Boston found a 5.9% rate of false reports. Researchers studied 812 reports of sexual assault from 2000-03 and found a 2.1% rate of false reports.
Adapted from:
National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (2015). National Sexual Violence Resource Center Info & Stats For Journalists [Press release]. Retrieved 2017, from https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_factsheet_media-packet_statistics-about-sexual-violence_0.pdf
Global Sexual Violence
- Global Sexual Violence:
According to the World Health Organization’s report, “Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Against Women,” (2016): - Violence against women – particularly intimate partner violence and sexual violence – are major public health problems and violations of women’s human rights.
Global estimates published by WHO indicate that about 1 in 3 (35%) women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime.
Most of this violence is intimate partner violence. Worldwide, almost one third (30%) of women who have been in a relationship report that they have experienced some form of physical and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner in their lifetime.
Violence can negatively affect women’s physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health, and may increase vulnerability to HIV.
Factors associated with increased risk of perpetration of violence include low education, child maltreatment or exposure to violence in the family, harmful use of alcohol, attitudes accepting of violence and gender inequality.
Factors associated with increased risk of experiencing intimate partner and sexual violence include low education, exposure to violence between parents, abuse during childhood, attitudes accepting violence and gender inequality.
There is evidence from high-income settings that school-based programs may be effective in preventing relationship violence (or dating violence) among young people.
In low-income settings, strategies to increase women’s economic and social empowerment, such as microfinance combined with gender equality training and community-based initiatives that address gender inequality and relationship skills, have shown some effectiveness in reducing intimate partner violence.
Situations of conflict, post conflict and displacement may exacerbate existing violence, such as by intimate partners, and present additional forms of violence against women. - Violence Against Women. (n.d.). Retrieved January, 2017, from https://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs239/en/