Rape is a crime that affects people from all backgrounds, but females between the ages of 12–34 are most often the targets of sexual assault. Risk peaks in the late teen years. Girls 16 to 19 years of age are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault (National Crime Victimization Survey, 2000). Male victims comprise about 10% of all victims (www.rainn.org). In West Virginia, 1 in 6 adult women and 1 in 21 men will be the victim of an attempted or completed forcible rape in their lifetimes (WV Health Statistics Center, BRFSS, 2008).
According to the 2009 West Virginia State Police Incident-Based Reporting System (WV-IBRS): Over l,200 sexual offenses were recorded by law enforcement.
- The average age of the victim was 17 years old.
- The most frequently reported age was 15.
- 64.8% of the victims were juveniles.
- The majority of victims were female (83%).
- The majority of the victims (93%) and offenders (83%) were white.
- Over 2/3 of the victims were not related to the offender.