sexual assault

Event to raise awareness about sexual assault and rape

Luke Hammons — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 23:17:42 +0000

Several groups will lead a rally in Laramie this week to combat rape culture. The event called Take Back the Night will incorporate music, dance and poetry to raise awareness about sexual assault and support survivors.

Wyo. judge sets $2M bail for suspected abductor

The Associated Press — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 21:58:02 +0000

A judge has set bail at $2 million cash for a Montana man suspected of abducting and assaulting an 11-year-old Wyoming girl.

Thirty-nine-year-old Jesse Paul Speer made his initial court appearance today/Friday before Circuit Court Judge Bruce Waters in Cody. His preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 26.

Prosecutors allege Speer forced a Cody girl into his SUV at gunpoint on Oct. 8, then assaulted and abandoned her outside of town. Hunters eventually found the girl.

He was arrested Saturday in Montana.

A look at sexual assault in Wyoming

Willow Belden — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 00:51:01 +0000

April is sexual assault awareness month, and Becca Fisher from SAFE Project, a group that provides services to victims, joins us to talk about the problem. She says nearly half of Wyoming women are sexually assaulted at some point in their lives. The incidents can range from unwanted touching to all-out rape, and Fisher says common scenarios are a little different than you might expect.

Many Wyoming rape victims know their attacker

Willow Belden — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 00:07:46 +0000

April is sexual assault awareness month and Becca Fisher of the Albany County SAFE Project, which assists victims, says many people have misperceptions about rape.

“A lot of us are taught to believe that it’s going to be a stranger jumping out from the bushes, or someone on a dark street when we’re alone walking at night. And that’s not typically how it happens.”

Fisher says in about 90 percent of sexual assault cases, the victim and the perpetrator know each other, sometimes very well.

Jury awards $300K in youth home sex lawsuit

The Associated Press — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:43:14 +0000

A former resident of a youth home in Laramie has been awarded $300,000 in his civil lawsuit stemming from a sex assault case involving the resident and a female counselor.

An Albany County jury sided with the former resident of the Cathedral Home for Children in Laramie. The lawsuit arose from a 2009 criminal case in which former counselor Katie Joseph was arrested for having a sexual
relationship with the resident. She was 31; he was 17.