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 New Jersey, sexual assault is a serious criminal offense that is defined under the state's criminal code. Specifically, sexual assault generally involves an act of sexual penetration with another person without that person's consent. This can include forced sexual intercourse, sodomy, or other forms of sexual penetration. Consent must be affirmative, knowing, and voluntary, and the lack of consent can be due to force, coercion, or the incapacity of the victim to give consent (e.g., due to intoxication, mental disorder, or age). New Jersey law also recognizes other related offenses, such as criminal sexual contact, which involves the intentional touching of the victim's intimate parts for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification, or to degrade or humiliate the victim, without the victim's consent. These offenses are codified in the New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice, and the severity of the charges and penalties can vary based on factors such as the age of the victim, the relationship between the victim and the offender, and the use of force or coercion.