The criminal offense of sexual assault generally involves forced sexual intercourse, sodomy, or other sexual penetration of another person—against the person’s will and without the person’s consent.
Sexual assault laws vary from state to state, and in some states the traditional criminal offense of rape is defined as the criminal offense of sexual assault. In some states the touching, groping, or pinching of the body of another person without the person’s consent and for purposes of sexual gratification is defined as sexual assault—and in other states such nonconsensual sexual contact is defined as the criminal offense of sexual battery or forcible touching, for example.
Sexual assault and related criminal offenses are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.
In Ohio, sexual assault is legally addressed under the state's statutes concerning sexual offenses. Ohio law primarily uses the term 'rape' to describe forced sexual conduct, which includes sexual intercourse or penetration, however slight, without the other person's consent. This is outlined in Ohio Revised Code Section 2907.02. The law does not require proof of physical resistance by the victim. Ohio also recognizes a separate offense called 'sexual battery,' which is defined under Ohio Revised Code Section 2907.03. This offense includes engaging in sexual conduct with another when the offender coerces the other person, knows that the other person's ability to control their conduct is substantially impaired, or knows that the other person submits because they are unaware that the act is being committed. Additionally, 'gross sexual imposition' under Section 2907.05 covers nonconsensual sexual contact for the purpose of sexual gratification. These statutes reflect Ohio's approach to criminalizing nonconsensual sexual acts, whether they involve penetration or sexual contact.
