NCJ Number
177716
Date Published
July 1998
Length
33 pages
Annotation
Wisconsin 1997 data on sexual assaults address the number and nature of sexual assaults, victim and offender characteristics, and various types of sexual assault (forcible rape, forcible sodomy, assault with an object, forcible fondling, statutory rape, and ejaculation/excretion on victim).
Abstract
In 1997 an estimated 5,881 sexual assaults were reported to law enforcement agencies, a 2.3-percent decrease from the 1996 estimated total of 6,020. The most common type of sexual assault was forcible fondling, which accounted for 50 percent of all reported cases. Of all sexual assaults, 29 percent were the most serious types of offenses (forcible rape, forcible sodomy, or assault with an object). Ninety-three percent of all sexual assaults were perpetrated by someone known to the victim, and 7 percent were committed by strangers. An offender was arrested in 63 percent of all cases. Ninety-one percent of all sexual assault offenders apprehended were referred to criminal or juvenile court. Sexual assaults occurred most often in the summer months. Sixty-two percent of assaults occurred in either the victim's or offender's home. Ninety-seven percent of assaults were committed by a single offender. Seventy-nine percent of all sexual assault victims were juveniles and were mostly women (84 percent) and white (78 percent). One percent of the victims had serious physical injuries, and an additional seven percent had minor injuries. The average age of a sexual assault offender was 25, and 92 percent were male. In 71 percent of the assaults, the offender was white. 10 tables, 6 figures, and appended Wisconsin sexual assault statutes