NM Dept of Health: 1 out of 4 Women Likely to be Raped

From ktsm.com -In a new report, the State Health Department says one in every four women has been raped at least once in her lifetime. In 2010, New Mexico had almost a ten percent increase in the number of sexual assaults. Why is this violent crime getting even worse? News Channel Nine spoke with the New Mexico Health department to find out. April is sexual assault awareness month and it couldn't be a better time to address a terrible problem in New Mexico. "We've seen a pretty dramatic increase in the number of rapes and what we're really trying to do with this new data, is bring awareness to the fact that these crimes do happen in the community," said Chris Minnick, the public information officer at the New Mexico State Health Department.  But something's not clear about the new statistics. "It's a double edged sword you know. It's not a good thing to see a number increase because it means more people are victims of this crime, but in another regard seeing an increase in the numbers means that more people are reporting this crime, which is what we really want people to do," said Minnick. The new data says that men are also victims of rape, but the women's numbers are shocking; one in four New Mexico women have been raped in their lifetime.  More News New Mexico

NM Dept of Health: 1 out of 4 Women Likely to be Raped