Remembering Audrie & Daisy: Part One
Names You Should Know More Than a Decade After the Tragedy Began
In 2012, Audrie Taylor Pott and Catherine Daisy Coleman were just 15 and 14 years old, respectively, with their whole lives ahead of them. The world came to know them, however, when the story of their sexual assaults was told in a Netflix documentary in 2016. Tragically, neither are here today to tell their own stories, so we must carry on in their stead.
In September of 2012, Audrie Pott went to a party with friends. After some drinks, an intoxicated and unconscious Audrie was dragged upstairs and sexually assaulted by three 16-year-old boys. They would also draw on her nude body with markers, and take photos of her as she lay there unaware, post assault. The boys then posted these photos online and spread them through texts, prompting mass ridicule on the victim. Audrie was harassed, bullied, and shamed for her own sexual assault. Sadly, before she could see her three attackers meet justice, Audrie Pott ended her own life. Audrie died just nine days after her horrific attack. In one of her last messages on Facebook to a friend just days before her death, Audrie wrote, “I have a reputation for a night I don’t remember. And the whole school knows.” (1)
Sadly, Audrie would never know the lengths her family would go to in order to seek justice in her name. While the three attackers did admit to her assault and possessing nude photos of Audrie, all received what some consider to be light consequences. Two were ordered to serve a 30-day sentence in a juvenile center, to be served on weekends. The third served a 45 consecutive day sentence. In 2015, a civil trial was set to take place in order to determine if the three involved in the assault should be held responsible for Audrie’s death, but was settled out of court. The terms of the settlement included a verbal apology in open court, admit a second time publicly to the sexual assault of Audrie, admit that their actions at the party and with the photos led to the death of Audrie, pay nearly one million dollars combined, support the petition for an honorary diploma for Audrie at graduation, and give ten presentations on sexual assault and sexting. (2)
Part two of this subject will cover Daisy’s story. It will be posted tomorrow. Please stay tuned.
-Alice
(2) https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/04/03/san-jose-boys-apologize-in-wrongful-death-lawsuit-settlement-over-girls-suicide/
Written By Alice.in.londini.land
