The criminal offense of sexual assault generally involves forced sexual intercourse, sodomy, or other sexual penetration of another person—against the person’s will and without the person’s consent.

Sexual assault laws vary from state to state, and in some states the traditional criminal offense of rape is defined as the criminal offense of sexual assault. In some states the touching, groping, or pinching of the body of another person without the person’s consent and for purposes of sexual gratification is defined as sexual assault—and in other states such nonconsensual sexual contact is defined as the criminal offense of sexual battery or forcible touching, for example.

Sexual assault and related criminal offenses are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Idaho, the criminal offense of sexual assault encompasses a range of nonconsensual sexual acts, including rape, which is defined under Idaho law as the penetration, however slight, of the oral, anal, or vaginal opening with a penis or any object, without the consent of the victim, or where the victim is incapable of giving consent due to mental disorder, mental incapacitation, or physical helplessness. Idaho Code § 18-6101 outlines the various degrees of rape, with penalties varying based on factors such as the use of force, the age of the victim, and the perpetrator's relationship to the victim. Additionally, Idaho recognizes crimes such as lewd conduct with a minor child under 16 (Idaho Code § 18-1508) and sexual battery of a minor child sixteen or seventeen years of age (Idaho Code § 18-1508A), which address nonconsensual sexual contact with minors. The state's laws are designed to protect individuals from any form of nonconsensual sexual acts, and the penalties for these offenses can be severe, including imprisonment and registration as a sex offender.