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Abstract: 

An estimated four million women are physically assaulted by male partners or cohabitants in the United States annually. A woman is physically abused in this country every nine seconds, and an estimated 1,871 women are forcibly raped each day. One study reported that the risk of rape for college women is 38 per 1,000. What is less commonly known is that older women are not exempt from this violence. National estimates for rates of elderly rape range from 2% for women over 55-yearsof- age to 7% for victims over 50. Treating and documenting rape in older victims has its own set of unique difficulties. This article deals with some of those issues.

Keywords: rates of elderly rape; difficulties treating and documenting elderly rape

Affiliations:  1: Fordham Law School.