by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Sarah Gordon didn’t ask for it.
She was in West Palm Beach with a friend. They were at a party. A little more than a year ago. She went to sleep. He walked in. She was 18, he was 30. They’d known each other for three years. He was engaged.
It didn’t matter.
The next day, after some convincing, Sarah went to the hospital. She submitted to exams and filed a police report. The next three days were — and still are — a blur.
Then, she waited.
He denied sexually assaulting her. He hired an attorney and a private investigator. The district attorney in West Palm set the case aside until August. He was never served with a warrant and was never charged with a crime.
Instead, Sarah paid dearly. She dropped out of school, went into depression. She contemplated suicide. She couldn’t sleep and she didn’t trust anyone.
Then Sarah decided to stop being a victim.
Thursday, as she conveyed her story during a press conference in the Police Memorial Building to announce April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month in Jacksonville, Sarah talked about using her assault to help others.
“I developed an anger, but I have turned that anger into a mission,” she said, fighting back tears along with most of the room. “Today, I am proud to say I am picking up the pieces and I am back in school. I am not a victim. I am a survivor.”
The facts surrounding sexual assault — both in the workplace and outside — are astounding. According to one database, every two minutes someone — men included — is assaulted in the United States. Of those assaults, 60 percent go unreported and of those reported, only 6 percent of the perpetrators go to jail.
Shirley Webb, executive director of the Women’s Center of Jacksonville, said between 1993 and 1999 there were 36,500 cases of rape or sexual assault in the workplace in Florida and other 12,000 cases of sexual harassment.
“Those have a large impact on families and the community,” said Webb. “Threats at work have a negative impact on other settings.”
Webb said there are two groups in Jacksonville devoted to assisting those who have been sexually assaulted in some capacity outside of the Women’s Council: the Sexual Assault Advisory Council which consists of representatives from the mayor’s office, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the State Attorney’s Office and several others and the Sexual Assault Interagency Council.
“They are on the front lines,” said Webb, referring to the second agency. “There are continued discussions about how we can improve our services. It’s something I think Jacksonville should be proud of.”
Mayor John Peyton said the issue is a problem in Jacksonville and is another example of violent crime that he is looking to dramatically reduce.
“When it comes to sexual assault, we have numbers that are disturbing,” said Peyton. “I appreciate the good work that goes on here. The work does not go unnoticed.”
Sheriff John Rutherford said the number of reported sexual assault cases in Jacksonville last year was 2,200, an increase of 9.9 percent from 2007. However, he doesn’t believe the increase is a reflection of a growing trend in the number of assaults, but rather an indicator that more victims are willing to come forward thanks to laws that better protect victims of sexual assault.
“The law no longer requires the victim to report the assault if they have evidence collected,” he said. “Now victims can have the evidence collected and make the prosecution decision later. I think that was a significant change.”
Webb said one of the goals of her organization is education, particularly at the middle and high school levels. She said the Women’s Council has met with 5,000 area middle and high school students.
“We are educating individuals about what rape really is and what the consequences are for both sides,” said Webb.
And, Sarah Gordon the survivor, is helping.
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