Sexual Misconduct

Sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking.

Consent

Affirmative words or conduct indicating the freely, willingly, and knowingly given agreement to have specific sexual contact. A person cannot consent if incapacitated by drugs or alcohol, coerced into submission, unconscious, or otherwise physically or mentally incapacitated. Consent to one form of sexual contact does not imply consent to other forms. An existing relationship, past relationship, or prior consent does not imply consent to future sexual contact.

Sexual Harassment

Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, explicit sexist remarks, and verbal, written, or physical contact of a sexual nature when:

  1. Submission to such contact is made either explicitly or implicitly a condition of an individual’s employment or academic advancement;
  2. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment or academic decisions affecting such an individual;
  3. Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual’s work or academic performance or creating an undesirable working, studying or living environment; or
  4. Such conduct is directed toward the sexual orientation of an individual with the intent to demean, embarrass or “out” the individual.

Sexual Assault

Sexual contact with another person, without that person’s consent. A person’s use of alcohol or drugs is not a defense to a sexual assault.

Stalking

Engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others, or suffer substantial emotional distress. For the purpose of this definition:
(1) Course of conduct means two or more acts, including, but not limited to, acts in which the stalker directly, indirectly, or through third parties, by any action, method, device, or means, follows, monitors, observes, surveils, threatens, or communicates to or about a person, or interferes with a person’s property.
(2) Substantial emotional distress means significant mental suffering or anguish that may, but does not necessarily, require medical or other professional treatment or counseling.
(3) Reasonable person means a reasonable person under similar circumstances and with similar identities to the complainant.

Dating Violence

Violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim. The existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on the reporting party’s statement and with consideration of the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the frequency of interactions between the persons involved in the relationship. For the purpose of this definition, dating violence:
(1) Includes, but is not limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat of such abuse.
(2) Does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence.

Domestic Violence

A felony or misdemeanor crime of violence committed by:
(1) A current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim;
(2) A person with whom the victim shares a child in common;
(3) A person who is cohabitating with, or has cohabitated with, the victim as a spouse or intimate partner;
(4) A person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred, or
(5) Any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction in which the crime of violence occurred.

Complainant

A person who has experienced an incident of sexual misconduct.

Report

Information regarding an incident of sexual misconduct.

Retaliation

Intimidation, threats, coercion, harassment, discrimination, or violence against a person for reporting an incident of sexual misconduct, filing a written complaint, or participating in a sexual misconduct proceeding.