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What is Sexual Assault?

Sexual Misconduct

Sexual misconduct, such as sexual harassment, non-consensual sexual contact, non-consensual sexual intercourse, and sexual exploitation, is a serious offense that has major consequences for the victim, the alleged offender, as well as for the campus community. It is the intent of Butler University to create and maintain an environment in which all members are treated with respect and dignity, and which is free from sexual misconduct.

This conduct is completely unacceptable and will be dealt with severely. Review pages 103-108 of the student handbook for further details.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual Harassment is:

• unwelcome, gender-based verbal or physical conduct that is,
• sufficiently severe, persistent and/or pervasive that it,
• has the effect of unreasonably interfering with, denying or limiting someone's ability to participate in or benefit from the University's educational program and/or activities.
• Examples of sexual harassment include: An attempt to coerce an unwilling person into a sexual relationship; to repeatedly subject a person to egregious, unwelcome sexual attention; to punish a refusal to comply with a sexual based request; to condition a benefit on submitting to sexual advances; sexual violence; intimate partner violence, stalking; gender-based bullying.

Non-consensual Sexual Contact

Non-consensual Sexual Contact is:

• any intentional sexual touching,
• however slight,
• with any object,
• by a person upon a person,
• that is without consent and/or by force.
• Examples of sexual contact include: Intentional contact with the breasts, buttock, groin, or genitals, or touching another with any of these body parts, or making another touch you or themselves with or on any of these body parts; any intentional bodily contact in a sexual manner, though not involving contact with/of/by breasts, buttocks, groin, genitals, mouth or other orifice.

Non-consensual Sexual Intercourse

Non-consensual Sexual Intercourse is:any sexual intercourse,

• however slight,
• with any object,
• by a person upon a person,
• that is without consent and/or by force.
• Examples of non-consensual intercourse include: Vaginal penetration by a penis, object, tongue or finger, anal penetration by a penis, object, tongue, or finger, and oral copulation (mouth to genital contact or genital to mouth contact), no matter how slight the penetration or contact.

Sexual Exploitation

Sexual Exploitation is:

• a student takes non-consensual or abusive sexual advantage of another for his/her own advantage or benefit
• or to benefit or advantage anyone other than the one being exploited, and
• that behavior does not otherwise constitute one of other sexual misconduct offenses
• Examples of sexual exploitation include, but are not limited to: Invasion of sexual privacy; prostituting another student; non-consensual video or audio-taping of sexual activity; going beyond the boundaries of consent (such as letting your friends hide in the closet to watch you having consensual sex); engaging in voyeurism; knowingly transmitting an STI or HIV to another student; exposing one's genitals in non-consensual circumstances; inducing another to expose their genitals; and sexually-based stalking and/or bullying.

Additional applicable definitions:

Consent:

• is clear, knowing and voluntary.
• is active, not passive.  Silence, in and of itself, cannot be interpreted as consent.  Consent is not simply the absence of no
• can be given by words or actions, as long as those words or actions create mutually understandable clear permission regarding willingness to engage in (and the conditions of) sexual activity
• Consent to any one form of sexual activity cannot automatically imply consent to any other forms of sexual activity.
• Previous relationships or prior consent cannot imply consent to future sexual acts.

Incapacitation:

Sexual activity with someone who one should know to be -- or based on the circumstances should reasonably have known to be -- mentally or physically incapacitated (by alcohol or other drug use, unconsciousness or blackout), constitutes a violation of these guidelines.

Incapacitation is a state where someone cannot make rational, reasonable decisions because they lack the capacity to give knowing consent (e.g., to understand the "who, what, when, where, why or how" of their sexual interaction).

In order to give effective consent, one must be of legal age. The age of consent in Indiana is 16.

These guidelines also cover a person whose incapacity results from mental disability, sleep, involuntary physical restraint, or from the taking of rape drugs. Possession, use and/or distribution of any of these substances, including Rohypnol, Ketamine, GHB, Burundanga, etc. is prohibited, and administering one of these drugs to another student is a violation of these guidelines. More information on these drugs can be found at http://www.911rape.org/

Force:

Is the use of physical violence and/or imposing on someone physically to gain sexual access.

Can include threats, intimidation (implied threats) and coercion that overcome resistance or produce consent ("Have sex with me or I'll hit you." "Okay, don't hit me; I'll do what you want.").

Coercion is unreasonable pressure for sexual activity. Coercive behavior differs from seductive behavior based on the type of pressure someone uses to get consent from another. When someone makes clear to you that they do not want sex, that they want to stop, or that they do not want to go past a certain point of sexual interaction, continued pressure beyond that point can be coercive.

NOTE: There is no requirement that a party resist the sexual advance or request, but resistance is a clear demonstration of non-consent. The presence of force is not demonstrated by the absence of resistance.