Too Drunk to Consent in South Carolina: Was It Rape?

If you were too drunk or drugged to know what was happening, you could not consent. South Carolina law is clear on this. What happened to you was sexual assault.

I Was Drunk and Had Sex — Was It Rape?

If you are asking yourself this question, read carefully. Consent requires a clear mind. Alcohol and drugs take that away. If you were so intoxicated you could not understand what was happening or control what you were doing, you did not consent — even if you said yes, even if you went along, even if you drank voluntarily.

The law does not grade your decisions that night. It asks one question: could you appraise and control your conduct? If the answer is no, it was not consensual sex. It was sexual assault.

Too Drunk to Consent: Is It Rape in South Carolina?

Yes. South Carolina defines "mentally incapacitated" in S.C. Code § 16-3-651 as being temporarily unable to appraise or control your conduct — whether that condition comes from illness, a defect, the influence of a substance, or any other cause.

Read that again: the influence of a substance. The statute does not distinguish between a drink you chose and a drink someone spiked. If the substance left you unable to understand or control what was happening, you were mentally incapacitated. Sex with a mentally incapacitated person is criminal sexual conduct.

Someone Spiked Your Drink? That Is First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct

If someone drugged you — slipped GHB, ketamine, Rohypnol, or anything else into your drink — and then had sex with you, South Carolina calls that first-degree criminal sexual conduct. S.C. Code § 16-3-652 punishes it with up to 30 years in prison. The law covers anyone who causes a victim to become mentally incapacitated or physically helpless by giving them a substance without their consent.

Roofied. Spiked drink. Drugged at a party. The label does not matter. The act does.

This pattern made national news in September 2026. In a lawsuit filed September 16, 2026, a former Cornell student alleges fraternity members pressured her to snort ketamine and then sexually assaulted her over several hours while she was incapacitated. Those allegations have not been proven in court. But the fact pattern — drugs, incapacitation, assault — is exactly what South Carolina's first-degree statute covers.

You Drank Voluntarily? You Still Could Not Consent

Voluntary drinking does not create consent. If you drank too much on your own and became unable to appraise or control your conduct, anyone who had sex with you knowing you were in that state committed third-degree criminal sexual conduct under S.C. Code § 16-3-654 — punishable by up to 10 years.

The difference between first and third degree is who caused the intoxication. It is not a defense. Your drinking is not consent. Their knowledge that you were incapacitated is the crime.

Signs You Were Roofied — What to Do Right Now

Think your drink was spiked? Common signs: sudden extreme intoxication after one or two drinks, blacking out, memory gaps, waking up confused or sore, feeling drugged the next day. Date rape drugs leave your system fast — GHB can clear in under 12 hours. Act now:

• Go to an emergency room immediately. Say you think you were drugged. Ask for a toxicology screen and a rape kit.
• Do not shower, brush your teeth, or change clothes before the exam if you can avoid it.
• Save everything: texts, Snapchats, photos, the clothes you wore.
• Write down what you remember now, before details fade.
• You do not have to decide about police or a lawsuit today. Preserve the evidence first.

You Can Sue Even If No One Is Charged

Criminal charges and civil lawsuits are separate. The state decides whether to prosecute. You decide whether to sue. You can file a civil case for assault, battery, and emotional distress even if no one is ever arrested — and the burden of proof is lower than in criminal court.

I have handled sexual assault cases in South Carolina. If this happened to you at a South Carolina college — USC, Clemson, College of Charleston, Coastal Carolina, or any campus in the state — talk to a lawyer before the evidence disappears.

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Call (843) 343-5092. Your consultation is free and confidential.