Lorena: It's no longer laugher
Abuse isn’t ‘punchline’ long after Bobbitt chop
Lorena Bobbitt believes the public no longer views domestic abuse as a “punchline” in the 30 years since she cut off her thenhusband’s penis after she claimed he raped her earlier that night.
Since that infamous night that became a headline maker across the country, Lorena, who now goes by her maiden name Gallo, told the Daily Mail last week people understand the gravity of domestic violence.
“I believe people’s views on domestic violence have changed over the years,” she said.
“With the advancement in technology and how the news is relayed through many different sources, it’s helped people understand the seriousness of it and they don’t look at it as a punchline,” she added.
‘Rape’ preceded hack
The then-24-year-old hacked off John Wayne Bobbitt’s penis as he slept on June 23, 1993. She accused her husband, whom she later divorced in 1995, of rape and abuse prior to the grisly attack.
His penis was reattached following a 10-hour surgery.
She later went to trial after she was charged with malicious wounding, and John was also prosecuted after he was charged with marital sexual assault.
She was found not guilty by reason of insanity. He was also found not guilty at his trial.
Gallo previously told NBC’s “Today” show she had no regrets over chopping off her ex-partner’s penis.
“How can you regret something that was not planned?” she said in the 2019 interview.
“You have to understand, I wasn’t in my right mindset.”
John told the Daily Mail last week his side of things was never properly told.
“No one ever investigated my story property and got an accurate reporting,” he said. “Pretty much everyone got it wrong.”
He later launched a porn career. Gallo told the Daily Mail her exhusband has not tried to contact her in years.