Date rape drug

A date rape drug, also referred to as a predator drug, is any drug that is an incapacitating agent which, when administered to another person, incapacitates the person and renders them vulnerable to a drug facilitated sexual assault (DFSA), including rape. The most common types of DFSA are those in which a victim consumes a recreational drug such as alcohol administered surreptitiously. The most common form of DFSA is alcohol-related, with the victim in most cases consuming the alcohol voluntarily. Other date rape drugs include rohypnol, ketamine and gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB).

Frequency of occurrence

There is currently no comprehensive data on how frequently DFSA via surreptitious drug administration occurs, because many victims do not report their assault, and because rape victims who do report are often either never tested for these drugs, are tested for the wrong ones, or the tests are administered after the drug has been metabolized and left their body.

A 1999 study of 1,179 urine specimens from victims of suspected DFSAs in 49 American states found six (0.5%) positive for Rohypnol, 97 (8%) positive for other benzodiazepines, 48 (4.1%) positive for GHB, 451 (38%) positive for alcohol and 468 (40%) negative for any of the drugs searched for. A similar study of 2,003 urine samples of victims of suspected DFSAs found less than 2% tested positive for Rohypnol or GHB. The samples used in these studies could only be verified as having been submitted within a 72-hour time frame or a 48-hour time frame. Some of the substances tested for, such as GHB, are not detectable after 8–12 hours.

Date rape

Date rape is a form of acquaintance rape. The two phrases are often used interchangeably, but date rape specifically refers to a rape in which there has been some sort of romantic or potentially sexual relationship between the two parties. Acquaintance rape also includes rapes in which the victim and perpetrator have been in a non-romantic, non-sexual relationship, for example as co-workers or neighbours. Date rape is particularly prevalent on college campuses, where it frequently occurs in situations involving alcohol or other date rape drugs, which may facilitate the execution of drug facilitated sexual assault (DFSA).

History and usage

Historically, in much of the world, rape was seen as a crime of theft of a man's property (usually either a husband or father), which meant that by definition a husband could not rape his wife. Since the final decades of the 20th century, in much of the world, rape has come to be broadly regarded as sexual intercourse without a person's consent, making rape illegal, including among people who know each other and/or who have previously had consensual sex. Some jurisdictions have specified that people debilitated by alcohol or other drugs are incapable of consenting to sex. Courts have also disagreed on whether consent, once given, can later be withdrawn.

Date rape (disambiguation)

Date rape may refer to:

Date Rape (song)

"Date Rape" is a song by the band Sublime originally recorded for their 1992 debut album, 40 Oz. to Freedom. It was first released as a single in 1991, but did not become a hit until four years later, when the Los Angeles radio station KROQ began adding it into their playlists and it quickly became one of their most requested songs.

Bradley Nowell explained,

Humorous in tone, the song ends with the victimizer being sent to prison and being humiliatingly anally raped by a larger inmate.

Although "Date Rape" is one of Sublime's most popular songs, it barely made it on their first CD. Nowell and the other members of the band thought of it as one of their worst songs. They were often reluctant to play it during live shows when fans screamed out requests for it.

Pornographic actor Ron Jeremy stars in the "Date Rape" music video. Jeremy plays both the judge at the rape trial and the "large inmate" who rapes the man who sexually assaulted the female protagonist of the song.

The song was covered by Fishbone (who Sublime cited as an influence) on the 2005 Sublime tribute album entitled Look at All the Love We Found for which a music video was directed by Renee Tod and Josh Fischel (of the band Bargain Music). Fischel is the director of the Sublime documentary Stories, Tales, Lies & Exaggerations. The song also appeared on Fishbone's 2006 album Still Stuck in Your Throat.