`[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 77 Referred in House (RFH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 77


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 24, 2008

               Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Supporting the goals and ideals of National Sexual Assault Awareness 
                       and Prevention Month 2008.

Whereas on average, a person is sexually assaulted in the United States every 
        2\1/2\ minutes;
Whereas the Department of Justice reports that 191,670 people in the United 
        States were sexually assaulted in 2005;
Whereas 1 in 6 women and 1 in 33 men have been victims of rape or attempted 
        rape;
Whereas the Department of Defense received 2,688 reports of sexual assault 
        involving members of the Armed Forces in fiscal year 2007;
Whereas children and young adults are most at risk of sexual assault, as 44 
        percent of sexual assault victims are under the age of 18, and 80 
        percent are under the age of 30;
Whereas sexual assault affects women, men, and children of all racial, social, 
        religious, age, ethnic, and economic groups in the United States;
Whereas only 41 percent of sexual assault victims pursue prosecution by 
        reporting their attacks to law enforcement agencies;
Whereas \2/3\ of sexual crimes are committed by persons who are not strangers to 
        the victims;
Whereas sexual assault survivors suffer emotional scars long after the physical 
        scars have healed;
Whereas prevention education programs carried out by rape crisis and women's 
        health centers have the potential to reduce the prevalence of sexual 
        assault in their communities;
Whereas because of recent advances in DNA technology, law enforcement agencies 
        now have the potential to identify the rapists in tens of thousands of 
        unsolved rape cases;
Whereas aggressive prosecution can incarcerate rapists and therefore prevent 
        them from committing further crimes;
Whereas free, confidential help is available to all survivors of sexual assault 
        through the National Sexual Assault Hotline, more than 1,000 rape crisis 
        centers across the United States, and other organizations that provide 
        services to assist survivors of sexual assault; and
Whereas April is recognized as ``National Sexual Assault Awareness and 
        Prevention Month'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That--
            (1) it is the sense of Congress that--
                    (A) National Sexual Assault Awareness and 
                Prevention Month provides a special opportunity to 
                educate the people of the United States about sexual 
                violence and to encourage the prevention of sexual 
                assault, the improved treatment of its survivors, and 
                the prosecution of its perpetrators;
                    (B) it is appropriate to properly acknowledge the 
                more than 20,000,000 men and women who have survived 
                sexual assault in the United States and salute the 
                efforts of survivors, volunteers, and professionals who 
                combat sexual assault;
                    (C) national and community organizations and 
                private sector supporters should be recognized and 
                applauded for their work in promoting awareness about 
                sexual assault, providing information and treatment to 
                its survivors, and increasing the number of successful 
                prosecutions of its perpetrators; and
                    (D) public safety, law enforcement, and health 
                professionals should be recognized and applauded for 
                their hard work and innovative strategies to increase 
                the percentage of sexual assault cases that result in 
                the prosecution and incarceration of the offenders;
            (2) Congress strongly recommends that national and 
        community organizations, businesses in the private sector, 
        colleges and universities, and the media promote, through 
        National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, 
        awareness of sexual violence and strategies to decrease the 
        incidence of sexual assault; and
            (3) Congress supports the goals and ideals of National 
        Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month 2008.

            Passed the Senate April 23, 2008.

            Attest:

                                                NANCY ERICKSON,

                                                             Secretary.`