Event promotes believing and supporting survivors

What started off as a day of fun turned into the worst day of Amanda’s life.

Amanda, a sexual assault survivor, shared her heartaching story Wednesday at a news conference in Denver, organized for Start by Believing Day, part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

On St. Patrick’s Day, Amanda lost her phone and got separated from her friends celebrating in Denver. This story will use only Amanda’s first name at her request. Two men offered to help, but instead they lured her into a parking garage, where they raped her. After the attack, passers-by found Amanda disheveled, battered, fearful and seeking help.

“They were the first to believe me,” she said of the good Samaritans. Police were called, and Amanda was taken to a hospital, where she went through a thorough, compassionate examination as part of the beginning of a long and, at times, painful process to seek justice.

Amanda didn’t know the men who attacked her, but she gave police a detailed description. Two suspects were identified through Metro Denver Crime Stoppers, she said. One of the attackers was convicted by a jury, and the other made a plea agreement after an initial conviction was appealed and overturned.

“I went through two trials, as if one isn’t hard enough,” she said.

Amanda had a great amount of support, including from the city; the district attorney’s office; Denver police; Denver Health; and The Blue Bench, a Denver program specifically designed to help sexual assault survivors.

“A village of strangers believed me and believed in me,” said Amanda, who also received much-needed support from family and friends.

“No one should suffer in silence”

Mayor Michael Hancock was among the city’s supporters of the Start by Believing Campaign who attended the news conference. He thanked Amanda for sharing her story and “raising awareness. It’s important.”

“Denver encourages everyone to believe victims of sexual assault, and we must continue the shift from doubt and blame to belief and support,” Hancock said. “We should start by believing because our reaction has the potential to make a direct impact on those close to us, and we should make it a positive impact.

“No one should suffer in silence,” Hancock said. “Our reaction to their trauma can make a world of difference. Our response can be as simple as — ‘I believe you.’ ”

Denver District Attorney Beth Mccann said that “half of all sex assaults go unreported.”

People who are sexually assaulted should come forward, and like Amanda, pursue justice, Mccann said.

In Denver, the filing of sex assault charges dropped during the pandemic. In 2018, according to Mccann, 163 cases were filed. In 2019, 128 cases; and 82 in 2020. Cases rose in 2021, with 105 filings.

“If you tell us you were sexually assaulted, we will start by believing you,” McCann said. “We will bring people to justice.”