Rape Statistics, can you rely on them?

[boston bean]

Here's a good article from 2011, that outlines some of the issues with the reports:

According to the 2010 Uniform Crime Report, released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation last week, there were 84,767 sexual assaults in the United States last year, a 5 percent drop from 2009.

The definition of rape used by the F.B.I. — “the carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will” — was written more than 80 years ago. The yearly report on violent crime, which uses data provided voluntarily by the nation’s 18,000 law enforcement agencies, is widely cited as an indicator of national crime trends.

But that definition, critics say, does not take into account sexual-assault cases that involve anal or oral penetration or penetration with an object, cases where the victims were drugged or under the influence of alcohol or cases with male victims. As a result, many sexual assaults are not counted as rapes in the yearly federal accounting.

Please read the entire article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/us/federal-rules-on-rape-statistics-criticized.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Good news is this:

Attorney General Eric Holder Announces Revisions to the Uniform Crime Report’s Definition of Rape

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced revisions to the Uniform Crime Report’s (UCR) definition of rape, which will lead to a more comprehensive statistical reporting of rape nationwide. The new definition is more inclusive, better reflects state criminal codes and focuses on the various forms of sexual penetration understood to be rape. The new definition of rape is: “The 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.” The definition is used by the FBI to collect information from local law enforcement agencies about reported rapes.

“Rape is a devastating crime and we can’t solve it unless we know the full extent of it,” said Vice President Biden, a leader in the effort to end violence against women for over 20 years and author of the landmark Violence Against Women Act. “This long-awaited change to the definition of rape is a victory for women and men across the country whose suffering has gone unaccounted for over 80 years.”

“These long overdue updates to the definition of rape will help ensure justice for those whose lives have been devastated by sexual violence and reflect the Department of Justice’s commitment to standing with rape victims,” Attorney General Holder said. “This new, more inclusive definition will provide us with a more accurate understanding of the scope and volume of these crimes.”

“The FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Advisory Policy Board recently recommended the adoption of a revised definition of rape within the Summary Reporting System of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program,” said David Cuthbertson, FBI Assistant Director, CJIS Division. “This definitional change was recently approved by FBI Director Robert S. Mueller. This change will give law enforcement the ability to report more complete rape offense data, as the new definition reflects the vast majority of state rape statutes. As we implement this change, the FBI is confident that the number of victims of this heinous crime will be more accurately reflected in national crime statistics.”

The revised definition includes any gender of victim or perpetrator, and includes instances in which the victim is incapable of giving consent because of temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity, including due to the influence of drugs or alcohol or because of age. The ability of the victim to give consent must be determined in accordance with state statute. Physical resistance from the victim is not required to demonstrate lack of consent. The new definition does not change federal or state criminal codes or impact charging and prosecution on the local level.

“The revised definition of rape sends an important message to the broad range of rape victims that they are supported and to perpetrators that they will be held accountable,” said Justice Department Director of the Office on Violence Against Women Susan B. Carbon. “We are grateful for the dedicated work of all those involved in making and implementing the changes that reflect more accurately the devastating crime of rape.”

T he longstanding, narrow definition of forcible rape, first established in 1927, is “the carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will.” It thus included only forcible male penile penetration of a female vagina and excluded oral and anal penetration; rape of males; penetration of the vagina and anus with an object or body part other than the penis; rape of females by females; and, non-forcible rape.

Police departments submit data on reported crimes and arrests to the UCR. The UCR data are reported nationally and used to measure and understand crime trends. In addition, the UCR program will also collect data based on the historical definition of rape, enabling law enforcement to track consistent trend data until the statistical differences between the old and new definitions are more fully understood.

The revised definition of rape is within FBI’s UCR Summary Reporting System Program. The new definition is supported by leading law enforcement agencies and advocates and reflects the work of the FBI’s CJIS Advisory Policy Board.

Click here to read a blog post from Director Carbon on the importance of the new definition of rape to our nation’s law enforcement, and for survivors of rape and their advocates. Click here to listen to the FBI’s podcast .

http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2012/January/12-ag-018.html

Note that the second excerpt is a press release from the DOJ, therefore there is no copyright infringement.

[ismnotwasm]

1. Ugh

But that definition, critics say, does not take into account sexual-assault cases that involve anal or oral penetration or penetration with an object, cases where the victims were drugged or under the influence of alcohol or cases with male victims. As a result, many sexual assaults are not counted as rapes in the yearly federal accounting.

I hope people have the remotest clue how disgusting and wrong this is.

[redqueen]

2. Do they include child rape?

Children who are 'molested' are being raped, so it seems like they should be included in the total.

[boston bean]

3. not anyone under 12, I believe. nt

[ismnotwasm]

4. Bottom line

When have half of all rapes actually reported n the first place.

Statistics say arrest for 'forcible rape' is down, but that's arrest.

Oral, anal and penetration with a object are not included

We have a backlog of unprocessed rape kits to the tune of 400,000

Children are 'molested' not raped.
There is more but with just those facts alone how could anyone think rape statistics are reliable?

[redqueen]

5. What irritates me...

is that most often this 'but rapes are down!' mantra seems to be used as a derailing tactic.

As in if you dare to talk about rape culture, people bring it up to try to shut discussion of rape culture down.

I suppose if the incidence of domestic violence drops, we'll be condescendingly instructed to shut up about that, too.

[boston bean]

7. Did you read this in the first link:

In Chicago, the Police Department recorded close to 1,400 sexual assaults in 2010, according to the department’s Web site. But none of these appeared in the federal crime report because Chicago’s broader definition of rape is not accepted by the F.B.I.

[seabeyond]

6. this is the issue. i read in fbi 30-70% of rapes not reported. wow. that is a very wide range of

not knowing the amounts of rape.

i read all these reasons rapes are not put into numbers. another reason recently is if there is another crime, they will take that crime instead of the rape, even reported. date rape is not part of the equation, because it is not "forcible".

police force across the nation caught and police speaking out that rape is too often downgraded to another crime specifically to keep the numbers low.

so i ask.

how can the numbers be used to suggest rape is down. what we hear today, and what we lived in the past. if i dont believe the numbers are accurate, is that such a bad thing? am i really gonna say, life is just so much better for our girls and we really do not need to be concerned with the issues.

if any other statisical numbers had so many problems, we would not buy into it.

i simply ask, why are we suppose to buy into this. depend on these numbers to give an accurate view of what todays situations are?

i dont get it.

i am not so gullible. i do not know if the numbers are up. i do not know if the numbers are down. none of us know shit.... when it comes to numbers of rape. i do know that many in the process are actively working on decreasing numbers out of pressure from higher ups. that is never a good thing.

i dont believe the numbers.

that simple.