Overall, there are about 42.5 million Americans with disabilities, making up 13% of the civilian non-institutionalized population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 23% or 1 in 4 adults in Massachusetts have a disability.
Persons with disabilities are victimized by crime at much higher rates than the rest of the population. Crimes committed against persons with a disability are also frequently unrecognized and underreported – a problem that has reached epidemic proportions in the United States.
STATISTICS
Crimes Against Persons with a Disability
Victims of all
nonfatal violent crime
According to the Department of Justice, in 2019, Persons with disabilities were victims of 26% of all nonfatal violent crime, while accounting for about 12% of the population.
Victims
of abuse
A 2014 survey revealed that 70% of respondents with any disability reported that they had been victims of abuse.
Experienced abuse
more than once
Of individuals with any disability who reported abuse, over 90% experienced abuse on more than one occasion and 46% experienced abuse more frequently than they could count.
Women reported sexual violence
The Massachusetts Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System reports that among adults, the percentage of women with disabilities who have experienced sexual violence is 26%, versus 14% for women without disabilities.
Experienced
sexual assault
A 2018 NPR story based upon unpublished Department of Justice data concluded that people with intellectual disabilities are sexually assaulted at more than seven times the rate of people with without disabilities.
Reported some type of sexual abuse
In 2014, 41.6% of respondents with any disability reported some type of sexual abuse. Additionally, one third (34%) of respondents with a developmental disability reported being victimized by some type of sexual abuse.
Prevalence of lifetime sexual violence among men
In 2011, the prevalence of lifetime sexual violence was 13.9% among men with a disability, compared to 3.7% for men without a disability. Men with disabilities were four times more likely to report lifetime and past-year victimization compared to men without disabilities.
RISK FACTORS
Vulnerability of a Person with a Disability
The vulnerability of a person with a disability is heightened when he or she is dependent upon a caregiver. The close personal contact involved with assisting persons with a disability with daily activities such as bathing, dressing and personal hygiene fosters dependence upon the caregiver. Persons with a disability may also have an impaired ability to utilize self-defense and avoidance of violence mechanisms. It is a common misperception that persons with a disability are asexual, incapable of relationships and not able to engage in sexual acts. Consequently, when a person with a disability discloses that he or she has been a victim of sexual abuse, that person is frequently not believed. This dynamic is complex and places a person with a disability at greater risk of sexual abuse.
