A joint resolution expressing the sense of Congress with respect to raising awareness and encouraging prevention of sexual assault in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
PL 108-38 (S.J.Res.8), enacted 06/26/2003

117 STAT. 833
PUBLIC LAW 108–38—JUNE 26, 2003
Public Law 108–38
108th Congress
Joint Resolution
Expressing the sense of Congress with respect to raising awareness and encouraging
prevention of sexual assault in the United States and supporting the goals and
ideals of National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
Whereas, on average, another person is sexually assaulted in the
United States every two minutes;
Whereas, the Department of Justice reports that 248,000 people
in the United States were sexually assaulted in 2001;
Whereas, 1 in 6 women and 1 in 33 men have been victims of
rape or attempted rape;
Whereas, children and young adults are most at risk, 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, less than 40 percent of sexual assault victims pursue
prosecution by reporting their attack to law enforcement agencies;
Whereas, two-thirds of sexual crimes are committed by persons
who are not strangers to the victims;
Whereas, the rate of sexual assaults has decreased by half in
the last decade;
Whereas, because of recent advances in DNA technology, law
enforcement agencies have the potential to identify the rapists
in tens of thousands of unsolved rape cases;
Whereas, aggressive prosecution can incarcerate rapists and there-
fore prevent them from committing further crimes;
Whereas, sexual assault victims suffer emotional scars long after
the physical scars have healed; and
Whereas, free, confidential help is available to all victims 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 victims of sexual
assault: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, 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
both the prevention of sexual assault and the prosecution
of its perpetrators;
(B) it is appropriate to salute the more than 20,000,000
victims who have survived sexual assault in the United
June 26, 2003
[S.J. Res. 8]
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117 STAT. 834
PUBLIC LAW 108–38—JUNE 26, 2003
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S.J. Res. 8:
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 108–113 (Comm. on the Judiciary).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 149 (2003):
Apr. 11, considered and passed Senate.
June 10, considered and passed House.
States and the efforts of victims, volunteers, and profes-
sionals 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 victims, and
encouraging the increased prosecution and punishment of
its perpetrators; and
(D) police, forensic workers, and prosecutors 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 incarcer-
ation of the offenders;
(2) Congress urges national and community organizations,
businesses in the private sector, and the media to 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.
Approved June 26, 2003.
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