Last week, I attended the Military Institute On the Prosecution of Sexual Violence held at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington D.C.  More than fifty Army criminal prosecutors (and one very high speed Marine) came together from around the globe to attend this very important training. 

We have all heard the phrase 'no means no.'  But far more is needed to protect against sexual assault and rape.  It also means no if a person is incapable of saying no.  Our legal system has made great strides in recent years towards protecting victims of sexual assault and prosecuting this horrible crime.  But we still have a long way to go.  According to the U.S. Department of Justice, a woman is raped approximately every two minutes in the United States.  In 2007, there were approximately one quarter million sexual assaults and the reality is that it is impossible to come up with a precise number because of the large number of such assaults that go unreported.  About one out of every six American women will be the victim of rape or an attempted rape in their lifetimes.  The majority of sexual assault victims, more than 90%, are women.  Moreover, approximately 15% of rape and sexual assault victims are children under the age of twelve.

The suffering of many sexual assault victims only begins with the assault.  According to the World Health Organization, victims of sexual assault are approximately three times more likely to suffer depression as compared with the general population, six times more likely to suffer from PTSD, thirteen times more likely to struggle with alcohol abuse, twenty-six times more likely to abuse drugs and four times more likely to contemplate suicide.

One of the struggles that remains in this country is for the public, and juries in the courtroom, to get over the prejudices that have plagued sexual assault victims since time immemorial.  A sexual assault is a sexual assault.  And it is a crime.  If a person has not consented to sexual contact or is incapable of consenting for a host of reasons ranging from age to intoxication, it is sexual assault.  No one "deserves" to be the victim of a sexual assault.  No one is "asking for it" because of their level of intoxication, how they are dressed, or even if there have been consensual relations in the past.  Neither does it matter how a person behaves in the aftermath of a sexual assault or that a person may wait for a long time to report an assault.  Every victim of sexual assault reacts differently.  Some may be tearful, distraught, depressed, or suicidal.  Others may act as if nothing has happened and wish to "normalize" their life.  Some victims report an assault immediately and others, for a host of reasons, may wait to report or may never report a sexual assault at all.

If you have been the victim of a sexual assault, I encourage you to report it.  It is true that doing so can be a difficult thing to do.  You may have worries that no one will believe you or that you will be subjected to scrutiny.  Yet know that if you have been the victim of a sexual assault, it is not your fault and there are people who are willing to listen and willing to help.  And also understand that many of those who commit sexual assault are predators and your reporting, even if the crime ultimately cannot be prosecuted, may prevent the next person from being sexually assaulted.