Crime Data Brief: Child Rape Victims, 1992

Prevalence and Patterns of Sexual Assault Across the Life Span Among Incarcerated Women

“…Furthermore, our findings reveal differences in perpetrators and patterns of abuse reported by our incarcerated sample compared to that seen in nonincarcerated samples in the United States. Specifically, sexual assault in our sample was most likely to occur in childhood, whereas previous research has documented higher rates of sexual assault of females in adolescence and adulthood (Langan & Harlow, 1994;Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000); prevalence of sexual assault by partners in adolescence was actually lower for our incarcerated sample as compared with that reported by a representative sample of high school girls (Silverman et al, 2001); and our sample reported that sexual assault in adulthood was slightly more likely to be perpetrated by a stranger than by a partner, whereas nonincarcerated women in the United States are more likely to report sexual assault by a partner than by a stranger (Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000). Overall, these findings demonstrate a unique pattern of sexual assault across the life spans of incarcerated women.…”

Where Are the Children?

“…At the same time, as defendants refuse plea bargains that would classify them as sex offenders, more cases go to trial where conviction rates are low. Contrary to the idea that carceral feminism has shifted to focus on threats outside the family (Bernstein 2010), 70% of convictions nationally in 1992 for rape of children under the age of 12 were for incest and another 24% for assaults by acquaintances; for children older than 12 years, 36% of rape convictions were for incest and 45% for rapes committed by acquaintances (Langan and Harlow 1994).…”

“…Age is thus a central intersectional dimension for understanding sexual violence. A large proportion of rapes reported to law enforcement are against minors; an estimated 51% of all female forcible rape victims are under the age of 18 and an estimated 16% are under of 12 (Langan and Harlow 1994). 2 Children and adolescents are individuals whose legal rights and social, economic, and political power are limited.…”

Making Meaning of Megan's Law

“…The Guidelines dwell at length on the harms done by strangers, though they rarely acknowledge that the types of assaults most feared by the public—the physically violent penetrative rape of a child by a stranger—are a tiny fraction of assaults. Incest offenses, in comparison, constitute approximately 46 percent of convictions for sexual assaults committed against children (Langan and Harlow 1994), 26 often occur over several years, and are committed against a victim who is usually dependent on the abuser for the most basic life necessities. Preventative policies that truly sought to protect the greatest number of children from the greatest source of harm would instead prioritize intrafamilial abuse, not predation by strangers.…”

“…26 26 According to the same report, another 50 percent of convictions were obtained for offenses against children under twelve committed by friends and acquaintances; only 4 percent of convictions were against stranger assailants (Langan and Harlow 1994). …”