The #MeToo movement is no longer top of mind as it was several years ago. While it sparked critically important progress in recognizing the victims of sexual assault and harassment, there is still much left to do. As someone who has worked for much of my adult life in the sexual violence prevention field, both as an educator and an advocate, I know that prevention can often be difficult – full of complicated issues and sad stories.
As a state, we need to be doing everything we can to ensure that our laws regarding sexual assault do a better job of encompassing all clear violations of bodily autonomy. This includes expanding protections against what is colloquially referred to as “stealthing.”
Stealthing is the nonconsensual removal or tampering with a condom that an individual has agreed to use. Perpetrators often report committing this act during intercourse because they just don’t like condoms, and sex feels better without having to wear one.
According to research, roughly 12% of women will experience an act of stealthing in their lifetime. Stealthing victims often leave the encounter feeling many of the same feelings reported by rape victims. They feel violated, ashamed, traumatized and scared.
The negative outcomes facing stealthing victims are obvious, including a heightened risk for contracting sexually transmitted diseases and increased chances for an unwanted pregnancy. Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last summer to overturn the national right to an abortion, the consequences of stealthing can be particularly severe in states that have rolled back safe and legal access to the procedure.
As an advocate and a teacher, I have had many young women reach out to me to disclose that they had been victims of stealthing, an assault they often described as a rape. As they told me their stories, I would feel totally gutted when I had to explain to them that there was no use in reporting their experiences to the police or to an attorney. What had happened to them was totally legal, because the act of sneakily removing a condom does not violate Maine law.
One such case was brought to me several years ago by a high school student. At the time, I was no longer working in the sexual assault services field, so I connected the young woman with some of my former coworkers – heroes, really – who helped her through the reporting process with a Maine state trooper. But unfortunately, the case was closed the day it was opened. The victim felt victimized again when she was told she had no options for legal action, criminal or civil. This experience was one of the driving factors behind my decision to run for a seat in the Maine House of Representatives.
This session, I have introduced legislation, L.D. 1683, that would create a civil cause of action in Maine law for victims of stealthing. Passing this legislation will be a critical step toward acknowledging the trauma suffered by victims and finally providing them with a recourse to seek justice.
This is not a partisan issue. This is not a crazy, feminist issue. And it’s not just a Maine issue, either. Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Vermont have all considered similar bills in recent years, and California passed legislation in 2021.
Of my bill’s co-sponsors, three are Republicans, four are Democrats and two are independents. Seven of the co-sponsors are men and two are women, representing every corner of our state.
There is currently a significant gap in our state’s sexual violence laws regarding stealthing. It is beyond time that we finally close it and support victims of this type of assault.
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