Local News

Crime Victim Speaks Out About Painful Past

Posted 2006-08-04T00:15:39+00:00 - Updated 2001-04-24T05:30:00+00:00

Every 11 minutes, someone in North Carolina becomes a crime victim. Outside the State Capitol, one woman told the chilling story of her own painful past Monday as part of National Crime Victims Rights Week.

Elizabeth Stephenson spoke at length about being sexually abused by her own father.

"Beginning when I was six years old, a first-grader, he began the rape of my soul, my innocence and my body," she says. "Sexual abuse is a community issue, and whether you like it or not, it is your issue."

Monday's ceremony was a chance to not only remember victims of crime, but also commit to winning them more rights.

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