Sexual assault
What is sexual assault?
Sexual assault covers a range of unwanted sexual behaviours including:
- showing sexual materials such as pornography to a person who does not wish to see them
- using inappropriate sexual language to another person
- not respecting another person's privacy (e.g. purposely walking in on someone while they are naked)
- touching a person's breasts or genitals without consent
- showing one's own genitals or masturbating in public
- stimulating another person's genitals or making them masturbate without consent
- receiving or giving oral sex without consent
- having sexual intercourse without consent.
Section 61 of the NSW Crimes Act gives the legal definition of sexual assault and its related penalties.
Some facts about sexual assault
Sexual assault is a crime that few victims tell the police or others about. Studies show that, in the general population, about 20 percent of women and 5 to 10 percent of men are victims of sexual assault. Only about 15 percent of these crimes are reported to police. (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1996, Women's safety survey).
Sexual assault and people with disability
Studies show that:
- fifty to ninety percent of women with intellectual disability are likely to be sexually assaulted in their lifetime
- people with disability are three times more likely to be a victim of violent crime
- there are high rates of assault of people with disability by service providers
- the sexual assault of a person with disability is less likely be acted on
- offenders gravitate to residential settings.
Sexual assault and older people
A US study found that:
- offenders are commonly service providers and other residents
- those with cognitive impairments who are physically frail are targeted
- sexual assault of older people is less likely to be detected and acted on
- over half of victims died within one year of an assault due to trauma.
Adapted from Blyth, J and Kelly, L. ‘Responding to sexual assault in disability and aged care settings: the SADA project'. Presentation at the 2nd National ACROD Ageing and Disability Conference, Hobart, 19–20 July 2005.