Washington, D.C., Oct. 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
Media Availability: Participating legislators and Erin Vilardi, founder and CEO of Vote Run Lead Action, are available for interviews today.
Vote Run Lead Action (VRLA) today announced that 22 state legislators across 16 states, including 21 women lawmakers, have committed to closing the “voluntary intoxication” loophole—a legal gap in 19 states that can make it nearly impossible to hold an attacker accountable when a survivor chose to drink or use drugs.
Jane Doe’s case at Cornell has put a national spotlight on the gap in laws governing sexual assault and voluntary intoxication. What happened to her is now fueling coordinated action by lawmakers working to ensure that being too intoxicated to consent does not mean being left without legal protection.
At its core, this is a question of bodily autonomy: Should a person’s decision to drink or use drugs strip away their legal protection if they are sexually assaulted? In 19 states, it can.
“Rape is a form of torture, yet in 19 states, the law treats it like a technicality. No one forfeits their right to protection because they chose to drink or use drugs,” said Erin Vilardi, founder and CEO of Vote Run Lead Action. “Jane Doe is fighting in the courthouse. Now these legislators are fighting in the statehouse. Twenty-one women legislators from 15 states are coming together to make clear that intoxication is not consent. We built this network so women can wield power differently, move quickly across state lines, and turn shared urgency into action. Our goal is nothing short of closing this gap in all 19 states.”The legislators—members of Vote Run Lead Action’s Next 250 Power Network—will champion legislation in the 2027 session to ensure that consent never depends on how a survivor became intoxicated, and that voluntary intoxication can never be used to deny survivors legal protection.
Legislators Leading the Push
Connecticut: Sen. Mae Flexer (District 29)
Delaware: Rep. Eric Morrison (District 27)
Florida: Rep. Anna Eskamani (District 42)
Hawaii: Rep. Jeanne Kapela (District 5)
Indiana: Rep. Maureen Bauer (District 6)
Kentucky: Rep. Lisa Willner (District 35)
Maine: Rep. Valli Geiger (District 42)
Mississippi: Sen. Kamesha Mumford (District 26), Rep. Timaka James-Jones (District 51)
Missouri: Rep. Ashley Aune (District 14)
New Hampshire: Rep. Anita Burroughs (Carroll County District 2), Rep. Christine Seibert (District 21)
New Jersey: Assemblywoman Katie Brennan (District 32)
New York: Sen. Lea Webb (District 52), Sen. Nathalia Fernandez (District 34), Sen. Samra Brouk (District 55), Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas (District 34)
North Dakota: Rep. Jayme Davis (District 9)
Pennsylvania: Rep. Lisa A. Borowski (District 168)
Tennessee: Sen. Charlane Oliver (District 19), Rep. Aftyn Behn (District 51)
West Virginia: Delegate Kayla Young (District 56)
“We would never say someone who chose to drink also chose to be robbed or beaten—yet that is exactly how our law treats sexual assault. The choice to consume a substance belongs to the person who made it. The choice to assault belongs to the person who committed it,” said Kentucky State Representative Lisa Willner. “Our laws should keep those responsibilities exactly where they belong. I'm committed to closing this gap in Kentucky because a woman's right to bodily autonomy doesn't end at the bottom of a glass—and no attacker should get to use her drink as his defense.”
“I was raped in college, which is why I’m proud to stand with women legislators across the country working to close dangerous gaps in our sexual assault laws,” said Missouri State Representative Ashley Aune. “We’re fighting to ensure survivors are protected, perpetrators are held accountable, and the law is crystal clear: intoxication is not consent.” “We have passed this legislation unanimously in the Senate for four consecutive years. New Yorkers should not have to wait another year for the law to catch up. The support is there. The urgency is there. Now we need action,” said New York State Senator Nathalia Fernandez. “Choosing to drink should never determine whether a survivor can seek justice after an assault. New York must close this loophole and make clear that intoxication is never a defense for sexual violence.”
“Jane Doe, who came to my district to pursue her education at Cornell University; Kendall Francis at LSU; and countless other survivors of sexual assault and gender-based violence on college campuses and in our communities have been failed by the systems that were supposed to protect them,” said New York State Senator Lea Webb. “Right now, New York law limits a survivor’s ability to bring charges if they willingly took drugs, alcohol, or another intoxicating substance. I am proud to cosponsor S10632 to close this egregious loophole, and to stand with women legislators nationwide to keep women safe. Agreeing to drugs or alcohol does not—and cannot—equate to consent, nor can it negate the validity of any assault charges. It is well past time for this bill to become law.”
“Consent should not depend on how someone became intoxicated, and survivors should not lose legal protections simply because they voluntarily consumed a substance,” said Indiana State Representative Maureen Bauer. “Indiana law should make clear that intoxication does not erase a person’s right to consent. It’s time to close this gap, ensure Indiana law protects survivors, and hold offenders accountable.”
“Tennessee law already protects a woman if somebody spiked her drink. If she ordered it herself, the law shrugs, and a rapist’s best defense becomes her bar tab,” said Tennessee State Representative Aftyn Behn. “We’ve spent generations teaching women how not to get raped, instead of changing the law to mean too drunk to consent means too drunk to consent, no matter who poured the drink. So, we’re closing this loophole in Tennessee next year, and anybody who wants to defend it can explain that to me and the women of Tennessee.”
“West Virginia has already taken an important step by closing the marital sexual assault exemption. In the upcoming legislative session, we’re ready to take the next step,” said West Virginia Delegate Kayla Young. “I’m proud to join women lawmakers across the country in this fight to protect all victims of sexual assault. Every survivor deserves the protection of the law, and their safety and dignity must come first.”
“Having a drink is a choice. Sexual assault is not. A survivor’s decision to drink should never be used to excuse violence committed against them," said New Jersey Assemblywoman Katie Brennan. "I’m proud to join this national coalition of women lawmakers fighting to close this dangerous gap in the law because consent shouldn’t have exceptions. What someone drinks should never determine what someone else is allowed to do to their body.”
Other states have already proven this gap can be closed. In 2021, after the Minnesota Supreme Court overturned a rape conviction in State v. Khalil because the victim had voluntarily been drinking, lawmakers moved within months to close the gap. In 2025, Texas passed the Summer Willis Act, removing the requirement that a perpetrator must have administered an intoxicating substance for the law to recognize a victim’s incapacity to consent.
As state legislatures reconvene in January, participating legislators and organizations including the National Women’s Defense League Action Fund will move this work through a range of strategies, from legislative action to other efforts that strengthen legal protections for survivors.
“The opportunity to advance policy change in statehouses that will protect survivors and hold predators accountable is enormous,” said Emma Davidson Tribbs, Founding Director of the National Women’s Defense League Action Fund. “We applaud the lawmakers that are stepping up to close this dangerous loophole and deliver meaningful protections for survivors—and we will be building the campaigns and coalitions needed to support them and carry this legislation across the finish line.”
“This is exactly why we built this network,” Vilardi said. “Not simply to elect more women, but to help them wield power differently than men have traditionally wielded it once they’re in office. Women legislators are building power across state lines, turning outrage into action, and using their positions to deliver change for survivors. They won’t stop until every survivor is protected under the law.”
About Vote Run Lead Action
Vote Run Lead Action, a 501(c)(4) organization, trains and supports women to run for office and wield power once elected, building a network of women state legislators with the policy, communications, and organizing infrastructure to act collectively on issues that matter to women and their families. Visit VoteRunLeadAction.org.
Destanie Morman Vote Run Lead Action 904-624-2995 Destanie@VoteRunLeadAction.org
