A person generally commits the criminal offense of rape by using force, threats of force, coercion, or fraud to have non-consensual sexual intercourse with another person. In some states this criminal offense is called sexual assault. Rape is a felony offense with significant jail or prison time as potential punishment.

Laws vary from state to state and some state laws also include in the definition of rape sexual intercourse with a person who is intoxicated by drugs or alcohol, unconscious, or mentally disabled and unable to consent to the sexual intercourse. And some states have a broad definition of the lack of consent to sexual contact constituting rape and include sexual contact with public servants (police officers, etc.), members of the clergy, mental health service providers, and employees of assisted living centers or nursing homes as lacking consent under some circumstances.

In some states it is rape or sexual assault for a health care services provider performing an assisted reproduction procedure to use human reproductive material from a donor other than the patient’s intended donor.

Rape or sexual assault laws are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Washington State, rape is legally defined under the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 9A.44. It is a felony offense and encompasses non-consensual sexual intercourse obtained through force, threat of force, or when the victim is incapable of giving consent due to incapacitation from drugs or alcohol, being unconscious, or having a mental disability. Washington law recognizes different degrees of rape, with varying levels of punishment based on the severity of the offense. The state also considers it rape when there is sexual intercourse with certain individuals who are unable to consent due to their status, such as those in custodial or fiduciary relationships, including law enforcement officers, clergy members, mental health service providers, and employees of assisted living or nursing homes under specific circumstances. Additionally, it is a criminal offense in Washington for a health care provider to use reproductive material from a donor that is not the one intended by the patient during assisted reproduction procedures. The penalties for rape in Washington are severe and can include lengthy prison sentences.