An article in the Baltimore Sun reports that sex crimes (sexual assault and rape) are the most underreported types of crime in the nation. According to women's advocates, 80 percent of sex assault crimes are not reported to authorities.

According to the Baltimore Sun, the people most vulnerable to suffering rape include:

  • Drug addicts
  • Teen runaways
  • Prostitutes
  • Homeless people

"Little wonder they [victims of sex crimes] have learned to distrust almost everyone, including the police," goes the article in the Baltimore Sun, given that life for drug addicts and prostitutes and others can be an "exhausting struggle" against poverty and abuse and social isolation.

According to the Baltimore Sun, Baltimore City is running an advertising campaign of sorts that seeks to spread this message: Rape isn't the victim's fault. The message is meant to stem the tide of unreported sex crimes - seeking to make "a fundamental change" in attitudes that marginalize victims of rape.

Source: The Baltimore Sun, "Rethinking sexual assaults," 10/06/11