
(2) using force causing or likely to cause death or grievous bodily harm to any person

(1) using unlawful force against that other person Any person subject to this chapter who commits a sexual act upon another person by. One legal definition, which is used by the United States Armed Forces is found in the United States Uniform Code of Military Justice, defines rape as: These definitions can vary considerably, but many of them do not use the term rape anymore, instead using sexual assault, criminal sexual conduct, sexual abuse, sexual battery, etc. Īt the state level, there is no uniform legal definition of rape instead, each state has their own laws. Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.įor 80 years prior to the 2013 change, the UCR's definition of rape was "carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will". The UCR's definition of rape was changed on 1 January 2013 to remove the requirement of force against a female and to include a wider range of types of penetration. In the United States, at the Federal level, the FBI's Uniform Crime Report (UCR) definitions are used when collating national crime statistics from states across the US. įurther information: Sexuality in the United States Of those assaults, the Bureau of Justice Statistics stated that 34.8% were reported to the police, up from 29.3% in 2004. Since rapes are a subset of all sexual assaults, the prevalence of rape is lower than the combined statistic.

The survey included males and females aged 12+. For the last reported year, 2013, the annual prevalence rate for all sexual assaults including rape was 0.1% (annual prevalence rate represents the number of victims each year, rather than the number of assaults since some are victimized more than once during the reporting period). Furthermore, a 2014 study suggested that police departments may eliminate or undercount rapes from official records in part to "create the illusion of success in fighting violent crime".

Ī 2013 study found that rape may be grossly underreported in the United States. Rape in the United States is defined by the Department of Justice as "Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim." While definitions and terminology of rape vary by jurisdiction in the United States, the FBI revised its definition to eliminate a requirement that the crime involve an element of force.
