Sexual Abuse Info
Defining Sexual Assault/Abuse
According to Iowa law, sexual abuse is defined as a sex act committed by one person by force on another person, or against that other person's will.
A sex act occurs when one persons genitals touch another persons mouth or genitals, or when a substitute for a person's genitals, such as fingers or an object, touches another person's genitals.
If you are sleeping or unconscious due to drugs or alcohol or any other reason, and someone has sex with you, that's sexual abuse, too.
If you want to read what the 1999 Code of Iowa says about sexual abuse, the table of contents for Chapter 709 contains the laws about sexual abuse and you can look up whatever sections you need to.
If you want to read what the 1999 Code of Iowa says about the rights of crime victims, the table of contents for Chapter 915 lists each of those rights.
In addition to the way the term "sexual abuse" is used in the Iowa Code, people use the terms rape, sexual assault, and sexual abuse to talk about a variety of different behaviors. The following "definitions" convey an idea about how the various terms are used throughout this website.
sexual assault: an incident of a sexual act that is either against the will, by force, or without the consent of one of the people involved. A sex act is defined as oral, anal, or genital contact with the genitals of another person. A hand or an object can be used as a substitute for genitals, e.g. a finger inserted into the vagina, or a beer bottle inserted into the rectum. We often use the term sexual assault interchangeably with the word rape.
rape: used interchangeably with sexual assault. There is no term "rape" in Iowa law. Instead, rapes are considered "sexual abuse" in the first, second, or third degree.
sexual abuse: throughout this site we use this term in a broader fashion than the Iowa law does. It can refer to any kind of abusive behavior in which sex is used as a weapon or as a threat. That could include many behaviors such as: obscene phone calls, exhibitionism, window peeking, attempted rape, rape, childhood sexual abuse, and so forth.
incest: when a person sexually abuses a member of the same family.
child sexual abuse: anytime a child is sexually abused, fondled or molested in a sexual way, no matter what relationship the perpetrator has to the child
acquaintance rape: when a victim knows the person who raped her/him.
date rape: a rape that occurs on a date or similar social event.
sexual harassment: sexual or gendered attention directed at someone that is against that person's wishes; behavior a person considers threatening or intimidating. (Sometimes this includes sexual assault-see above.)
domestic violence: an incident or pattern of behaviors (may include physical, emotional, economic, verbal and/or sexual abuse) that a person uses to gain power and control within an intimate relationship. "Domestic" usually refers to live-in partners, former live-in partners, or adult relatives who live in the same household.
dating violence: physical, emotional, economic, verbal, or sexual abuse committed by one dating partner against another.
stalking: legally, "a repeated course of conduct intended to cause fear of bodily injury or death." Also used by us to include following and/or repeated harassment, regardless of intent.
