Frequently Asked Questions

Visit our Help for Victims microsite to learn about resources and services for victims of crime.

Another source of help is your local victim/witness assistance program. You may contact the VictimConnect helpline by phone at 855-484-2846 or online chat for a referral in your area.

Find out more in this brochure, What You Can Do If You Are a Victim of Crime, which includes a brief overview of OVC, your rights, and where you can get help.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey Victimization Analysis Tool provides victimization data by victim/offender relationship (stranger vs. non-stranger). Additional information is available on the Stranger and non-stranger crime section of the Bureau of Justice Statistics website.

Statistics on sexual assaults in the military can be found in the U.S. Department of Defense Annual Reports on Sexual Assault in the Military and in the Annual Reports on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies. Visit the Reports section of the U.S. Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response website to access these data.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey Victimization Analysis Tool provides data on the number of sexual assaults that occur annually in the United States. The annual Crime in the United States report, published by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, provides data on rape reported to the police.

For additional information about sexual assault, visit the Sexual Assault section of our website.

Select OVC publications and products are available in hardcopy and can be ordered from the Office of Justice Programs. You can search for and order available OVC resources via the Office of Justice Programs Publication Listing page. While these resources are free, shipping and handling fees may apply. View the Shopping Cart Help for more information.

Information about drug-facilitated sexual assault can be found in Drug-Facilitated Rape: Looking for the Missing Pieces, an article in the National Institute of Justice Journal.

Additional information about drug-facilitated rape/sexual assaults is available in the National Institute of Justice-sponsored resource Drug-facilitated, Incapacitated, and Forcible Rape: A National Study.

GHB (gamma hydroxybutyrate) is a depressant drug that is sometimes used in to perpetrate crimes, such as sexual assaults and rapes. Information about its use in drug-facilitated rape/sexual assault can be found in the following National Institute of Justice (NIJ) produced resources—

• Drug-Facilitated Rape: Looking for the Missing Pieces,
• Drug-facilitated, Incapacitated, and Forcible Rape: A National Study, and
• Estimate of the Incidence of Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault in the U.S.

Rohypnol (flunitrazepam) is a depressant drug that is sometimes used in to perpetrate crimes, such as sexual assaults and rapes. Information about its use in drug-facilitated rape/sexual assault can be found in the following National Institute of Justice publications—

• Drug-Facilitated Rape: Looking for the Missing Pieces,
• Drug-facilitated, Incapacitated, and Forcible Rape: A National Study, and
• Estimate of the Incidence of Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault in the U.S.

The National Protocol for Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examinations: Adults/Adolescents, Second Edition provides detailed guidelines for criminal justice and health care practitioners in responding to the immediate needs of sexual assault victims.

Additional information is available on the Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner Technical Assistance website. Please also visit the Office on Violence Against Women website for additional information.

Data on women sexually assaulted on campuses can be found on the Sexual Assault on Campus: Measuring Frequency section of the National Institute of Justice website and in the Bureau of Justice Statistics report, Rape and Sexual Assault Among College-age Females, 1995-2013.

Also visit the Office of Postsecondary Education Campus Security Campus Safety and Security Data Analysis Cutting Tool website and the Student Activism section of the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network site.

For additional information on this topic, view our Campus Crime and Sexual Assault pages.