--- title: Maryland Rape Law Loosens Burden of Evidence for Victims description: The new law establishes that survivors do not need to provide evidence that they physically fought back. Verbal resistance is enough canonical: https://time.com/4745731/maryland-rape-law-evidence/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-04-19T01:10:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T09:05:29.288Z og:title: Maryland Rape Victims Don't Have to Prove They Fought Back Under New Law og:description: They no longer have to provide proof of "physical resistance" og:url: https://time.com/4745731/maryland-rape-law-evidence/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a74c67d94d90490/6988c37bcd1bba962f704caa/gov-larry-hogan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4794 og:image:height: 2697 og:image:alt: Larry Hogan, Thomas V. Mike Miller, Michael Busch og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Maryland Rape Victims Don't Have to Prove They Fought Back Under New Law twitter:description: They no longer have to provide proof of "physical resistance" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a74c67d94d90490/6988c37bcd1bba962f704caa/gov-larry-hogan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Maryland Rape Victims Don't Have to Prove They Fought Back Under New Law > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Apr 19, 2017 1:10 AM UTC  Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, center, signs a series of bills between Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, left, and House Speaker Michael Busch during a bill signing ceremony following the state's legislative session at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Md. on April 11, 2017. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, center, signs a series of bills between Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, left, and House Speaker Michael Busch during a bill signing ceremony following the state's legislative session at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Md. on April 11, 2017. Patrick Semansky—AP  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Apr 19, 2017 1:10 AM UTC Rape survivors in Maryland will no longer have to provide evidence of “physical resistance” to prove a sexual crime was committed, [under a new law](https://governor.maryland.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Bills-to-be-Signed-by-the-Governor-on-April-18-2017.pdf) signed by the state’s governor on Tuesday. In changing the legal definition of rape for the state, the law makes it so that saying no — and not fighting back — will hold up in court, in line with [most other states.](http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/18/us/maryland-rape-law-updated-sb-217/) “Sexual assault survivors will no longer be forced to choose between keeping safe or having access to justice,” said Lisae Jordan, executive director of the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault, [told BuzzFeed News](https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexcampbell/under-maryland-rape-law-no-will-finally-mean-no?utm%5Fterm=.wgeogebXE#.qx1WLe0vz). “‘No’ will mean ‘no’ and the law will back them up.” Previously, Maryland’s rape law required more than just lack of verbal consent to classify a crime as rape. Instead, the statute called for evidence of “force or the threat of force,” which police often construed as meaning that physical resistance on the part of the victim had to be present as well. But as [BuzzFeed News pointed out](https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexcampbell/unfounded?utm%5Fterm=.dcqemq5bZ#.mkPAZLoJ9) in a 2016 investigation, instances in which victims are threatened with harm if they fight back make that physical response unlikely. As a result, many rape reports were considered “unfounded” by police. That will no longer be the case. The new law was first introduced as legislation by delegate Kathleen Dumais more than ten years ago. It will now go into effect on Oct. 1\. However, Maryland [is still one of seven states](http://motto.time.com/4744903/maryland-law-women-rapists/) in which women could legally be forced to share custody of children with their rapists. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4745731/maryland-rape-law-evidence/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4745731/maryland-rape-law-evidence/"},"headline":"Maryland Rape Victims Don't Have to Prove They Fought Back Under New Law","datePublished":"2017-04-19T01:10:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:05:29.288Z","description":"They no longer have to provide proof of \"physical resistance\"","url":"https://time.com/4745731/maryland-rape-law-evidence/","keywords":["motto","Maryland","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a74c67d94d90490/6988c37bcd1bba962f704caa/gov-larry-hogan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0a74c67d94d90490/6988c37bcd1bba962f704caa/gov-larry-hogan.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Larry Hogan, Thomas V. 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