Teens - Date/Acquaintance Rape

WHAT DO TO IF YOU ARE RAPED

Rape is the use of force or coercion and includes oral, vaginal and/or anal penetration with an object or a body part.  If you are raped, there are some things you can do.

• You can call the police, hospital or Hands of Hope Resource Center.  Hands of Hope has someone on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  You can talk to someone over the phone to ask questions or get support.  An advocate is also available to meet with you at the hospital or the police station so that you are not alone during an exam or police interview.

• If you choose not to call a particular service please talk to someone . . . a family member, teacher, counselor or friend.  Don’t go through the pain of this traumatic experience alone.

• After you are raped don’t destroy any evidence.  Don’t bathe, brush your teeth, wash or destroy clothes or anything else you came in contact with, such as sheets, blankets or towels.  If the rape occurred in your home don’t move anything or pick anything up.  Leave everything as it is.

• If you go to the hospital, take an extra set of clothes or take the clothes that you were wearing at the time of the assault.  The clothes you had on will be bagged up and kept for evidence.

• If you decide to have a sexual assault kit done at the hospital, the County will be responsible to pay for that exam, even if you do not report the rape to the police.  In order for evidence to be useable, an exam needs to be done within 48 hours.  You can have the exam done, and then decide whether or not to report later.

• During an exam, a doctor and nurse will look for physical injuries, hairs, etc. and will examine all areas of the body where semen may be found.  If there are physical injuries or bruises, a police officer may come in and take photos for evidence.  Even if it’s too late to gather evidence or you decide not to report, it is important to have an exam to test for bodily harm and disease.

• Rape is a felony and a crime against the state.  This means that you should you decide to report to law enforcement, you do not need to obtain your own lawyer.  The County Attorney and the investigator, in the county where the rape occurred, will decide if there is enough evidence to go to court.  They may very well believe that you were raped and they may even believe they know who did it, but without enough evidence, they will not put you through a trial if they think that they do not have a chance to win the case.

• Other forms of sexual assault are also crimes against the state and can be reported to law enforcement as well; however, it may not be necessary to have a medical exam done.

• After any assault has occurred, it is important to get support from others.  You may choose to do this through a counselor or advocate, friend, another person you trust and/or a support group.

HANDS OF HOPE RESOURCE CENTER

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