#MeToo event honors victims

Sexual assault victims and law enforcement speak out on surviving

A 16-year old sexual assault survivor who stood on the stage, wiping tears from her eyes as she told a full auditorium, “I am no longer a victim. I am a survivor,” as she shared the story of her assault.

The Lake County teen said she was honored to be speaking at the “#MeToo: What Happens Next?” Sexual Assault Awareness and Response Presentation at Lakeland Community College in Kirtland on April 25. She hoped her story would help or inspire other victims to come forward. She went on to tell how she was assaulted by someone she knew and trusted and the detrimental effects it had on her.

“I will move on and not let this affect me anymore,” she said. “Every time I talk about it, it helps me heal and I want to encourage people to come forward so they can love themselves again.”

The event, presented by the Lake County Prosecutor Victim Assistance Program and Eastlake Police Victim Advocates, was designed to spread awareness about sexual assault, how to prevent it and where to turn if it happens.

Other speakers were Sgt. Michael Bailey of the Painesville Police Department; Ruth Marshall, Eastlake Police Department victim advocate; Victoria LaMarco, credentialed advocate for the Lake County

Prosecuting Attorney’s Office; and Patrick J. Condon, Lake County assistant prosecuting attorney.

“In October, the #MeToo Movement started locally and nationally, and we noted a trend with the rape crisis centers and our hot lines of victims and survivors reaching out, just really trying to get services to deal with some of the issues that come along with being a sexual assault survivor,” said Kristin Llewellyn, volunteer coordinator for the Lake County Prosecuting Attorney Victim Assistance Program.

Llewellyn encouraged everyone in attendance to listen to the speakers with an open heart and to ask questions.

She also pointed out that April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month and it’s her office’s goal to

not only to help victims and survivors who are going through the criminal justice process. They also want to be out in the community and be resources for those who may decide not to file a police report for sexual assault.

Bailey spoke about his time as a detective and the triangle of numbers that hung at his desk. The base of the triangle had the number 30,000, which he said represents the number of sexual assault cases reported in a year.

“Keep in mind, only one in five assaults are actually reported, so the number 30,000 is low,” Bailey said.

He also inquired as to who takes the blame for the problem.

“It’s a society issue, so we can waste time blaming whoever we are going to blame, or we can do something about it and honestly,

it’s going to take all of us to change it,” Bailey said. “Victims have to have the feeling that if I step forward I’m going to be OK.”

“Initial disclosure of the victim is the most important,” Bailey said, explaining that is the first person the victim tells.

“It could be anybody — the police, it could be an advocate, it could be a doctor at the emergency room.”

Bailey then questioned if the audience would know what to do if someone called one of them.

“If someone calls you and reports sexual assault start by believing, ask them, ‘Are you safe right now, how can I help you?’ ” the sergeant said. “If you don’t believe them, act like you believe them, ask them, ‘Do you want me to call police, do you need medical attention, tell me as much

or as little as you want.’ ”

Marshall said it all begins with telling somebody. Victims’ advocates offers 24-hour crisis intervention. They come to the scene, to the hospital and to the police department. They advocate for victims of crime through out the entire court process.

“On misdemeanor cases, our focus is to give victims a voice and notify them of their rights and keep them informed, and our goal is to turn all victims into survivors,” Marshall said.

“We want them to heal as quickly as possible. They will never be completely healed as their lives change forever, but we need to be there for that person to start the healing.”

LaMarco noted that the #MeToo movement has changed some of the ways we see reportings of sexual assault happening in

the county.

“Which is great, we want to be there with victims and we want people to speak out,” LaMarco said. “We all live in this community and want to be safe.”

Condon, who said he was passionate about this issue, believes it’s unfortunate that it took celebrities to get out in front of the issue for it to be talked about in general society.

“We have to take it as it came. We are having the conversation now and people are opening up, there is a dialogue, there is listen going on and there is not judgment,” Condon said.

“Someone you know is probably a victim of sexual abuse and now we know how to listen to them and how to help them. It shows those affected by sexual abuse — our victims, our survivors — that they are not alone.”