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 Wisconsin, the criminal offense of rape is legally referred to as 'sexual assault.' Wisconsin statutes define various degrees of sexual assault, with first-degree sexual assault being the most severe. This includes non-consensual sexual intercourse or contact that involves the use of force or violence, threats of force, or taking advantage of someone who is incapable of giving consent due to intoxication, unconsciousness, or mental incapacity. Wisconsin law also recognizes that sexual intercourse with certain individuals, such as those who are mentally ill or have a mental deficiency, is non-consensual. Additionally, the state acknowledges that sexual contact without consent is criminal when it involves public servants, clergy, mental health service providers, or employees of assisted living or nursing homes under certain circumstances. The law also criminalizes the act of a health care provider using reproductive material from a donor other than the one intended by the patient during assisted reproduction procedures. Sexual assault is a felony in Wisconsin, and the penalties can include significant jail or prison time, depending on the degree of the offense and other specific circumstances.