Also known as: ravishments · ravish · ravishes · ravished · ravishing · rape · abduction
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Forcible sexual intercourse constituting the common-law crime of rape.
Roberto Reyes and an accomplice enter Regina Robinson's home to steal valuables. Reyes forces Robinson into sexual intercourse at knifepoint while the accomplice stands watch. When Robinson resists, Reyes strikes her fatally. The killing occurs during the rape, so the presumption of extreme indifference applies and the homicide is murder.
Rebecca Ross is cornered in her apartment stairwell by Ryan Roberts, who threatens immediate sexual assault. Ross reasonably believes she faces ravishment that cannot be safely avoided. She draws a licensed firearm and shoots Roberts once in the chest. The threat of ravishment supplies the reasonable belief of serious harm required for the privilege of deadly force in self-defense.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Ruby Rivera is convicted of raping an adult woman who survives the attack. The state seeks capital punishment. Because the victim did not die, the Eighth Amendment prohibits the death sentence as disproportionate to the offense of rape.
Raymond Ramos compels Regina Robinson to submit to sexual intercourse by threatening imminent serious bodily injury with a knife. Robinson is not his wife and does not consent. The use of force meets the statutory requirement for rape under the Model Penal Code definition.
Roberto Reyes is convicted of raping a child. The crime neither intended nor resulted in the child's death. The Eighth Amendment forbids imposition of the death penalty because capital punishment is disproportionate for this non-homicide offense.
Ruby Rivera is identified in a newspaper article as the victim of a rape committed by Ryan Roberts. The article uses her name obtained from public court records after the trial. Rivera asserts a privacy claim against the publisher for publishing the name without consent.
Ravishment supplies the reasonable belief of death or serious bodily harm that permits an actor to use deadly force in self-defense when the threat can be prevented only by immediate action. The Restatement recognizes this peril alongside threats of death or serious injury.
Yes. Under the Model Penal Code, recklessness and extreme indifference to human life are presumed when the actor commits or attempts rape, so a resulting death constitutes murder.
No. The Eighth Amendment bars capital punishment for the rape of an adult woman when the victim survives, because the penalty is disproportionate to the offense.
No. The Eighth Amendment prohibits the death penalty for rape of a child when the crime neither intended nor caused the child's death.
…physical deformity or mental deficiency," or that a pregnancy "resulting from legally established statutory or forcible rape or incest may constitute a threat to the mental or physical health of the patient," two other physicians "chosen because of their recognized professional competence have examined the…