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 Nevada, sexual assault is defined under Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) 200.366. The law characterizes sexual assault as subjecting another person to sexual penetration, or forcing them to penetrate someone else, against their will or under conditions where the perpetrator knows or should know that the victim is mentally or physically incapable of resisting or understanding the nature of their conduct. This includes instances where the victim is unconscious or where the perpetrator uses force, threat of force, or deception. Nevada does not use the term 'rape' in its statutes; instead, it falls under the broader category of sexual assault. Additionally, Nevada law recognizes the crime of 'open or gross lewdness' under NRS 201.210, which may cover other nonconsensual sexual acts that do not involve penetration, akin to what some other states might refer to as sexual battery or forcible touching. Penalties for sexual assault in Nevada are severe and can include life imprisonment, with the possibility of parole only after a minimum of 10 years has been served, depending on the circumstances of the crime and the age of the victim.