11 Years to Justice

Thank you for letting me share because I hope I can bring some hope and encouragement for those still waiting for Justice.

First I want to say how brave and strong everyone here is. Never forget that. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t be here.

In 1999 after a 8 year marriage of domestic violence I finally got out of, I then escaped into a short but horrific time on drugs.

During this time being pretty naive to the game while going to buy drugs, I was kidnapped, held in a house for two days and brutally raped.

The ER doctor at Charity Hospital in New Orleans said in my trial after 20 years of working in the ER she had never written a diagnosis of “Raped with deadly force” until my case…

I sustained many injuries including a broken jaw and cranial bleed, many others I will not mention.

The offender was immediately arrested.

Three days later I was picked up myself with a group of people on a sting. I was not at the time participating due to my injuries nor could I even defend my position because I couldn’t speak due to my jaw being wired shut.

I was convinced to plead guilty on a Crimes against Nature charge with a promise of probation… I had a previous possession arrest that amounted of residue they also added that. So I was sentenced to prison for THREE YEARS which I served 18 months.

At the same time I sat in jail cell for a crime I didn’t commit and residue my offender was RELEASED after 62 days the DA in New Orleans said they could not locate me so they let him go. (well I was next door in their jail)

Once I was released, I was on a mission. See I knew my life had taken an awful turn. I knew I was dying in the direction I was headed and God used that time to help me redirect my life.

For the next ELEVEN YEARS I would see this offender back in Orleans jail. I would call the DA, they would tell me, we lost your file. We can’t do anything without your file.

After Katrina, they told me it was destroyed in the storm and I asked, How do you know that when you didn’t know where it was before the storm?”

That was in 2006, the last time I would call them until 2009. I had to just give this to God. Being told they wouldn’t help me and knowing this rapist murdering animal was still free was just taking too much of my life from me.

In 2009, an old friend came to stay with me and she said, “Lisa, I’ll never forget the night you told me about what happened in that house”.

For the first time in 3 years I checked the Inmate Query in Orleans and there he was, now a photo popped up. This time he had been actually caught again for AGG RAPE.

I was so angry, then so sad for this new victim. My mind was going a mile a minute and then it hit me that the new DA was the Judge way back when that sentenced me to prison. The last two DAs wouldn’t help me. Will he? I had to try, for every vulnerable woman still out there and for me.

I went down on Monday am and spoke to a lady named ADA Mary Glass, she made one phone call. My old dusty file had been sitting in the same spot for ELEVEN YEARS.

The new District Attorney immediately convened a Grand Jury, got an indictment and he was prosecuted, convicted and sentenced to Life without Parole which ended last March because he died at Angola after 7 years.

The trial was in 2010 and that was a start in my healing. Getting justice, knowing this man couldn’t hurt anyone else is very important but…

I’ve come to know and still learning a much greater lesson in all of this. Each step of this journey when at the time I “felt” so damn weak I was so incredibly STRONG. I didn’t feel strong during this, it hurt like hell but that’s the beauty of it. Being able to survive the pain. Don’t underestimate how strong you are.

Don’t underestimate the true meaning of the word SURVIVOR.

I share my story with true transparency. Sure I put myself in a dangerous position but I no way shape or form did I deserve or ask for what happened to me to happen.

Don’t let anyone tell you rape is your fault or you got what was coming because you put yourself harms way. Of course we always need to do everything we can to stay safe but sometimes we can find ourselves in places and times in our lives when we are low. That doesn’t mean we are open season to get hurt and if that happens to us, we report, tell the TRUTH NO MATTER WHAT. Nothing we could possibly be doing can justify a person raping us. I told the police from the beginning why I was there and my story never changed and that is why we won our case 11 years later. Don’t be afraid.

Possibly because of that is why my case didn’t get the attention it deserved but I made it happen with Gods help.

Never Give Up!

Last week I received a full Gold Seal Pardon from the Governor of Louisiana on those charges. I do not regret or resent my stay incarcerated because I know it saved my life.

I know some things in my story may sound like I was mistreated and yes that is true but 18 years later I can assure each of those things have made me stronger and given me the courage to talk to people today. Things are changing.

I’m on the other side of this now and I PROMISE it gets better and there is a wonderful life to have after trauma.

We can’t let evil define us. We are Survivors! ❤️

— Lisa, age 48