Poster for Sexual Assault Awareness Month provided by: https://www.nsvrc.org/saam
By Grace Grogan
REGION ‒ During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, COVE (Communities Overcoming Violent Encounters) will host speaker Holly Dunn, the sole survivor of the Railroad Serial Killer.
Dunn will present at 6 p.m., Friday, April 19, at the Vogue Theatre, 383 River St., Manistee, and again at noon on Saturday, April 20, at Ludington Area Center for the Arts, 101 S. Harrison St., Ludington.
In 1997, Dunn and her boyfriend were viciously attacked. Her boyfriend was beaten to death; Dunn was raped, stabbed and left for dead. As a survivor, she brings advocacy, awareness and hope to people trying to reclaim their lives after experiencing domestic or sexual violence.
Her free presentations are sponsored by COVE, Mason County Community Foundation, the Vogue Theatre and LACA. Advance reservations are recommended by visiting: http://tinyurl.com/nm9hkyf8.
Those interested in learning more about Dunn’s story and advocacy efforts can find information online at: http://www.hollykdunn.com.
COVE, Communities Overcoming Violent Encounters
COVE is a non-profit organization with 45 years of experience helping sexual assault victims in Mason, Lake, Oceana and Manistee Counties. Its mission is two-fold: to provide services to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault and to educate communities about the root cause of violence.
Working directly with survivors, COVE provides crisis response, emotional support, safety planning, support groups, a crisis line and legal advocacy. The organization offers Emergency Sexual Assault Nursing Exams (SANE) for females 12 and older sexually assaulted within the past 120 hours. Last year, COVE provided services to almost 400 survivors of domestic and sexual violence and performed 21 SANE exams.
Karalee Bradshaw, executive director of COVE, wants survivors to know that nonjudgmental help and resources are available by calling the crisis line 365 days a week, 24 hours a day. (See sidebar.) Sexual assault does not discriminate based on race, gender, age or social status. It crosses all walks of life and has a lifetime effect on survivors. Anyone experiencing sexual assault at any time in their lives, including adult survivors of child molestation, can receive support at COVE.
Sobering statistics
Michigan ranks 4th highest in the country for sexual assault; for every 100,000 residents, there are 72.4 rapes. (World Population Review, Rape Statistics by State 2024) Nationwide, there is a sexual assault every 68 seconds. (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, Scope of the Problem: Statistics)
According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), Child Protective Services (CPS) substantiates or finds evidence for a claim of child sexual abuse every nine minutes. An average of 433,648 victims over age 12 are raped or sexually assaulted each year. About one in five women and one in sixteen male college students are targets of sexual assault.
Dangerous myths
The 2019 Michigan Sexual Violence Prevention Survey Report reveals that about 25% of Michigan residents don’t think consent is necessary when touching a longtime partner or spouse. Almost half of the survey respondents believe women enjoy teasing men sexually before rejecting them. Assailants use coercion techniques to wear down their intended victims’ resistance to sex with repeated attempts, body contact, showing porn or removing their clothes. Teens are especially vulnerable to:
- Guilt tripping: “If you loved me, you would,” “Why not? Do you think I’m ugly?”
- Obligation phrases: “As my girlfriend, you’re supposed to have sex with me,” “Don’t I mean anything to you?” or “Couples have sex when they’ve been together as long as us.”
- Threats: “If you don’t, I’ll find someone that will.”
Stand your ground against these techniques. No means NO! (“Is This OK? Consent: No Means No”, https://tinyurl.com/5n8fwpba ). Survivors are not at fault for being sexually assaulted due to their clothing choice, alcohol consumption, walking alone, changing their minds about sex or any other reason.
Reducing risks
According to the National Institute of Justice, about 85 to 90% of sexual assault victims know their attacker. (National Institute of Justice, Most Victims Know Their Attacker, September 30, 2008). Stay safe with the following safety tips from the University of North Carolina Police & Public Safety Division of Business Affairs (“Reduce the Risk of Becoming a Sexual Assault Victim”):
-Travel with a companion and stay fully alert by limiting your intake of drugs and alcohol.
-Avoid walking alone at night, and always be aware of your surroundings.
-Stay in well-lit areas and avoid doorways, alleys, or anywhere an attacker might hide.
-If you suspect someone is following you, enter a store or knock on the door of a well-lit home.
-Keep your gas tank at least half full to prevent stopping in unsavory areas or at night.
-Park in well-lit areas and always lock your doors.
-Have your keys in your hand when you exit the building.
-Scan the area below and around your vehicle as you approach, glancing at the rear seats and floor, then lock your doors immediately after entry.
-If you believe you are being followed, never go home. Drive to the nearest police department, open gas station or party store and honk your horn repeatedly.
-If someone offends or crosses your limit line, let them know immediately.
-Trust your instincts; immediately leave any situation that feels threatening.
Michigan Law
Michigan defines sexual assault as one person pressuring or forcing another into unwanted sexual contact. This includes everything from touching private body parts to penetration and includes performing sex in front of children, explicit videotaping without consent or distributing explicit photographs.
Children are usually victims of someone they know. It may be a family member, teacher, neighbor, clergy or other trusted adult. Child assault includes touching, penetration, taking graphic photos or other sexual acts.
There are four levels of criminal sexual conduct (CSC). There is no statute of limitations for first-degree CSC, such as the rape of a child. The law requires filing most abuse charges within 10 years of the assault or by a child victim’s 21st birthday, whichever is later.
New Law
It has been six years since Larry Nassar’s conviction on seven counts of felony criminal sexual conduct first degree. There are more than 156 survivors of this serial child molester. (Michigan Department of Attorney General, “Judge Sentences Larry Nassar to 40 to 175 Years in Prison for Sexual Assault”, Jan. 24, 2018) On Nov. 6, 2023, Governor Whitmer signed four bills into law supporting survivors:
- HB 4420—Allows prosecutors and police officers to share victim contact information with providers of victim support services.
- HB 4421—Ensures blurring of a crime victim’s image in photos, videos and court sketches streaming onto the internet.
- HB 4422—Expands the Crime Victim’s Rights Act of serious misdemeanor definition to include threatening a state health official with physical harm, embezzlement from a vulnerable adult and causing serious injury or death while driving.
- HB 4423—Allows a victim to provide an oral impact statement virtually for disposition or sentencing.
The legislation improves coordination between law enforcement and organizations assisting survivors while prioritizing privacy.
To find out more about sexual assault violence in the U.S., visit the website of the National Sexual Violence Research Center at https://nsvrc.org.
Call for Help – Resources
Compiled by Grace Grogan
C.O.V.E. of Ludington: 231-843-2541. Open 24/7 with shelter, protection, advocacy and Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners.
MSU 24/7 Sexual Assault Crisis Hotline: 517-372-6666
National Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-4673. A partnership of more than 1,000 local sexual assault service providers nationwide.
National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline: 866-331-9474
Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center (SAPAC) 24/7 crisis hotline: 734-936-3333
State of Michigan Sexual Assault Hotline: 866-864-2338
Campus Sexual Assault Webpage: https://www.michigangov/campussexualassault
(Campus Sexual Assault Book available for free HERE)
Grace Grogan is a freelance writer and photographer. She and her partner, Paul, live and travel North America full time in their 35-foot motorhome.
More stories by Grace Grogan can be found HERE.
