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I. INTRODUCTION
The United States Sentencing Commission's 1995 description of rape1 as a "growing problem" was an understatement.2 The numbers are shocking. For instance, "[ijn 1993, 100,200 forcible rapes were attempted and 40,730 were completed."3 This figure includes only reported rapes, and due to massive underreporting, the number of rapes in 1991 is estimated at 173,000-62% greater than the number reported.4 From 1981 to 1991, the United States experienced a 28% increase in reported rapes- more than double the 11.9% growth in the nation's population.5 These numbers remain high. The Department of Justice found that in 2008 there were 203,830 victims of rape or sexual assault over the age of twelve- roughly one sexual assault every three minutes.6 While the incidence of sexual assault has fallen steadily since 1973, the overall numbers remain staggering.7
Statistics indicate that most rapists are never punished for their crimes.8 Only 10% of rapes are reported to the police, and only 20% of those reported perpetrators are convicted of sexual assault.9 Doing the math, that means that only 2% of all rapists are punished, while 98% go free.10 State courts handle virtually all rape prosecutions, except for rapes occurring on federal land or in federal facilities," but they cannot keep up. Accordingly, there is a compelling need for federal resources to be brought to bear on this problem.12
Congress has acknowledged the need for federal involvement in enforcing laws against organized crime, as well as violence against women, and has used its commerce power13 to enact numerous laws to combat these crimes, such as the Violence Against Women Act,14 the Hobbs Act,15 and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute.16 In order to meet the goals of RICO, Congress also enacted the Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering Activity (VCAR) statute.17
Recognizing that the federal government is in the best position to enforce laws against violent members of organized crime the Senate Judiciary Committee, prior to the enactment of VCAR, noted that:
ITJhe need for Federal jurisdiction is clear, in view of the Federal Government's strong interest, as recognized in existing statutes, in suppressing the activities of organized criminal enterprises, and the fact that the FBI's experience and network of informants and intelligence with respect to such enterprises...