Sexual abuse of adults with mental retardation: who and where

Over a 5-year period, of the 461 cases of sexual abuse of adults with mental retardation, 37% were confirmed by the Abuse Investigation Division of the Connecticut Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities. As expected, most of the victims were women (72%); their average age at the time of the incident was 30 years. Victims, for the most part, had no problems communicating verbally and had few, if any, secondary disabilities. As is the case in the general population, the majority of the perpetrators were men (88%) and included other adults with mental retardation, paid staff, family members, and others. Most sexual abuse occurred in the victim's residence, and in 92% of the cases the victim knew his or her abuser. Results were discussed and several concerns raised.