I really loved the family and I made a lot of friends, Marie says. The real woman known as Marie in the original articleMarie is her middle namereported her rape to Lynnwood, Washington police on August 11, 2008. Her voice was like this little tiny voice, and I couldnt really tell. I was trying to be a good citizen, actually. She grew up with police, trusted police, knew how the police worked. By the time Marie reported being assaulted, sex crime specialists had developed protocols that recognized the challenges and sensitivity of investigating rape cases. By the time she exited the bathroom, he had gone. It was like, I felt like she was telling me the script of a Law & Order story. Part of it was what Marie was saying. He was only 8 the first time he broke into a home. Nor should police get lost in stereotypes believing, for example, that an adult victim will be more believable than an adolescent. We went to the ocean, it was like 7 oclock at night, I dont know what we were thinking, I got in there and I jumped out and swung my hair back.. In early October, less than two months after Marie was charged with false reporting, a 63-year-old woman reported being raped inside her condominium in Kirkland, east of Seattle. She had spoken to a friend on the phone for several hours early Aug. 11, 2008, finally going to bed around 5:30 a.m. She said she left the sliding-glass patio door ajar. She does not know if she attended kindergarten. [3] The Marshall Project and ProPublica are American non-profit online news organizations. It was like Id just eaten Thanksgiving dinner, he said. The woman had lost her husband to cancer the previous year. Before, she told the detective she had tried calling Jordan after cutting the laces. Before she left with a nurse, the woman warned Galbraith, I think hes done this before.. Marie began questioning whether she had dreamed the ordeal, and later told police she had made the story up. In 2015, the commander of Lynnwood's Criminal Investigations Division said that practices had since changed. She takes off in her car. Investigators, one guide advised, should not assume that a true victim will be hysterical rather than calm; able to show clear signs of physical injury; and certain of every detail. Marie, as directed, told her fellow participants in Project Ladder that she had lied about being raped. Galbraith recounted the days events. Marie Theresa Arzer, age 77, of Redmond, Washington passed away on Saturday, February 11, 2023. However, at the age of 18, Marie's foster mum, Peggy Cunningham, enlisted her in a program called Project Ladder, which allowed Marie to move into her own one bed flat, help her get a job and become self-sufficient. Gregg Rinta, a sex crimes supervisor with the Snohomish County Sheriffs Office, wrote that what happened was nothing short of the victim being coerced into admitting that she lied about the rape., That Marie recanted wasnt surprising, Rinta wrote, given the bullying and hounding she was subjected to. Check out never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! He is currently housed in the Sterling Correctional Facility in the barren, remote northeastern corner of Colorado. Project Ladder staff made Marie return to police when she said she made the report under duress. he would ask himself. His guess was, the police felt used. Marie couldnt wait for it. Marie's rape happened in 2008, two years before the rapes that were investigated and ultimately led to proving her story true. The technicians recovered three samples of so-called touch DNA, as few as seven or eight cells of skin that can be analyzed with modern laboratory techniques. The dark mark on his leg. Someone else is going to get hurt, Galbraith worried to herself. Yvonne Kay Hagen, age 62, Towner, ND Background Check. Before leaving Washington to restart her life, Marie made an appointment to visit the Lynnwood police station. It was a collaboration between two American, non-profit news organizations, The Marshall Project and ProPublica. Marie, her face in her hands, looked down. On her way, she crossed a bridge. It turned out the woman, identified in court documents by the initials D.M., was one of several victims of serial rapist Marc O'Leary, a former Washington man who admitted the 2008 crime and is. He let spill some lessons for law enforcement. They then informed Lynwood police, who informed Marie and Marie sued the city and received a settlement of $150,000. Later that day a meeting was called at the housing complex, with all of Maries peers gathered in a circle. After a five-week crush, there were few leads and no suspects. It was so organized, we were like, Oh, thank God.. The rules about life, Marie says. In OLearys house, investigators turned up a black Ruger .380-caliber pistol, a pink Sony Cyber-shot camera and a large backpack, along with wet wipes and lubrication. [23][24][3], Armstrong and Miller adapted their article and additional research into a 304-page book, A False Report: A True Story of Rape in America. She was always nice to talk to, Jordan says. But she did go online and look up what happened to the woman in Kirkland. I wanted to see the look on his face, I guess, she said. In August 2008, 18-year-old Marie Adler reported being raped by a man at knifepoint in her apartment who had gagged her, blindfolded her, and bound her with her own shoe-laces. "I wanted to talk about it and get it out.. Westminster Detective Edna Hendershot had settled into her morning with her Starbucks usual: a Venti, upside-down, skinny caramel macchiato. Golden police obtained a surveillance tape showing the entrance to the apartment complex where Galbraiths victim had been attacked. OLeary was put in a patrol car and transported to the Jefferson County Jail. [28][29] However, though Rosita Boland of The Irish Times enjoyed the early sections of the book, she found it to have a "curiously flat style overall, without any distinctive voice". She was charged with filing a false report, later forced to pay $500, and The Seattle Post-Intelligencer wrote a piece about her called, Police: Lynnwood rape report was a hoax., I was mad at God, Marie said. We would always hug and she would look you right in the eye. In the bedroom, Marie seemed casual, with nothing to suggest that something horrible had happened there. Marie said she didnt know of any discrepancies. One Sexual Assault Survivor's Quest To End The Shocking Backlog Of Untested Rape Kits. She cited Marie's lack of tears, claiming shedidnt think that Marie was emotional enough and she found it suspicious that Marie told several people about what had happened. By the time of the article, Marie was married with two children. Cities: Lynnwood WA, Livingston MT Possible Relatives: Kirsten Marie Gilliam, Jo Darlene Hagen. There it was, on OLearys left calf: a dark birthmark the size of a large chicken egg. OLeary thanked the officer for the information and closed the door. Mason is now back in narcotics, in charge of a task force. I just kind of trusted their judgment, in terms of its their case, they know the details and I dont, Weber says. It was just nice to be on my own and not have all the rules that I had had being in foster care, Marie said, according toProPublica. Jeff Mason didnt believe her. She recalled the camera that the attacker had used to take photos. I didnt want to give him the satisfaction. In hindsight, it was my job to get to the bottom of it and I didnt.. The eight-episode series, entitled "Unbelievable," isan adaptation of the 2015 Pulitzer-winning ProPublica and Marshall Project in-depth story about the case. As well as watching Netflix's new drama, premiering globally Friday, the original article, "An Unbelievable Story of Rape," is a must-read. While the program managers waited outside, Marie met with Rittgarn and another officer. Hed realized that before while peeping into her bedroom. For Marie, this was a familiar drill, one she could trace to her years of being abused as a kid, and to her years in foster care, bouncing from home to home and school to school. Mason filed a false reporting charge; such charges in similar circumstances were rare. Because I feel that if I would have shut my mouth, they would have done their job, she says. Rittgarn, who left the Lynnwood Police Department before OLearys arrest, declined to be interviewed for this story. In 2008, Marie, from Lynnwood, Washington, reported to police an intruder had broken into her home, bound and gagged her, and raped her at knifepoint. It didnt sound real to me. Marie liked dogs. He tied the woman up with her own shoelaces. Marie ended up suing the city of. Kirkland police abandoned this lead after Lynnwood police told them at least twice that Marie's account was a lie. Afterward, she could. The man had gone to extreme lengths to avoid leaving DNA evidence, but touch DNA from the same paternal family line was found at three of the four crime scenes. The real-life Marie also opened up about her traumatic experiences on a 2016 episode of This American Life, entitled "Anatomy of Doubt. She married, and in October she and her husband had their second child. Jennifer Gentile Long, CEO of AEquitas: The Prosecutors' Resource on Violence Against Women, commented that the article presented an "extraordinary learning opportunity for both criminal justice professionals and ordinary citizens alike". View Michelle Marie Barnes results in Lynnwood, WA including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. The case is true, and is based upon a Pulitzer Prize-winning 2015 joint investigation from ProPublica and the Marshall Project by reporters T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong. OPEN NOW. "When the police began doubting Marie, they turned on her, Armstrong told National Public Radio last year. Two years later, in Colorado, detectives investigate a serial rapist with the exact same modus operandiall without knowing that he may have struck before. He left the room, and walked to the front door, and he was gone. Unbelievable is inspired by the heartbreaking, real story of Marie Adler. She is strong. Investigators found a pair of Adidas ZX 700 shoes in OLearys closet. I was just too scared, Marie says. [22], "An Anatomy of Doubt" is the 581st episode of the American radio program and podcast This American Life. [9], Nora Caplan-Bricker of Slate reflected that "Marie's story helps remind us that false reports of rape are the exception, not the rule", believing that the article shows the "ruinous consequences" and "ubiquity" of rape victims being disbelieved. She had been charged with false reporting, punishable by up to a year in jail. Peggy, too, apologized. The entire series is harrowingly candid portrayal of Marie's story and the horrific injustice she experienced. Sometimes she got to be with her siblings, but most often not, according to the ProPublica report. In 2008, Maries case was one of 10 rape reports the department fielded; with so few, the Criminal Investigations Division didnt have a separate sex crimes unit. It was such a rush. She was young, dressed in a brown, full-length coat. It was awesome.. It premiered on September 13, 2019. She would need to get mental health counseling for her lying. For me it seems like people read me differently than I see myself, Marie said in the written piece about her struggle. Information from Seattle Times archives is included in this report. It was all a blur. She quit her Costco job and considered suicide. The report detailed how a 46-year-old artist had been accosted in her home by a man with a knife. The credibility of the victim was often on trial as much as the guilt of the accused. You should get help, the woman, a house mother at a local fraternity, told the man. Then she admitted making the story up". She was wearing new boots that day. During the exam, the medical report said, Marie was alert and oriented, and in no acute distress.. That mother would often leave her in the care of boyfriends. The report also added that Marie was sexually and physically abused.". Marie had been sexually and physically abused in early life and was in foster care for most of her childhood. An internal review also concluded that Mason and Rittgarn's behaviour was "designed to elicit a confession of false reporting." After looking through the images, she found an answer. He told them the evidence didnt support Maries story, and that she had taken her story back. She considered jumping. "I just got thisreally weird feeling. By the end of January 2011, the detectives had connected four rapes over a 15-month period across Denvers suburbs. The city of Lynnwood will pay a woman $150,000 to settle a lawsuit she filed after police charged her with filing a false report because they didnt believe she had been raped. Later that day Aug. 14, three days after Marie reported being raped Mason called Marie, to ask if they could meet. Six hours on her feet didnt bother her. The perpetrator of the serial rapes, Marc O'Leary, was also interviewed. "This is not the kind of story where you anticipate competition," Armstrong told Longform in 2016. But Hendershot right away recognized the potential in collaborating and in using every tool possible. If there was sympathy in the room, Marie sensed it from only one person, the young woman to her right. Sort:Default. The woman underwent a special forensic examination to collect more DNA evidence. also reached a settlement with Cocoon House, a private, nonprofit at-risk-youth program where she was living when the assault occurred. She flipped the switch, as she called it, suppressing all the feelings she didnt know what to do with. Marie sued the city of Lynnwood and the . American Restaurants Seafood Restaurants Restaurants (7) Website View Menu. She wanted to be honest. After I got off the phone with him, I started thinking about all things I was stressed out and I also was scared living on my own. Before he left, he showed the student how he broke in through a sliding glass door. Shannon saw an account of the attack on the television news and was taken aback. Kaitlyn Dever stars as the victim of a serial rapist in Netflix's new series "Unbelievable.". 2701 184th Street SW, Suite A101. We strongly believe that Cocoon House and its employees acted appropriately on behalf of the client., Bob Christie, the attorney who represented Lynnwood police, said the settlement resolves an unfortunate situation for everyone involved.. Before she confessed to making up the story, she couldnt look the two detectives, the two men, in the eye. A week later, Galbraith, Hendershot and Aurora Detective Scott Burgess gathered around a conference table in the Westminster Police Department. On Aug. 13, Marie met with Mason at the Lynnwood police station and turned in a written statement, describing what happened. These guidelines, available to all police departments, detailed common missteps. Carefully, she compared OLearys white Mazda to the surveillance tape. He had a term for what he was about to do: rape theater. Deviant fantasies had gripped him since he was a kid, way back to when he had seen Jabba the Hutt enslave and chain Princess Leia. But in fresh light, it appeared very much like a failed rape attempt, committed by an attacker who closely resembled the description of the rapist. It was a picture of the womans learners permit, placed on her chest. He liked trees, for the cover they provided, and the Alderbrooke Apartments had plenty of them. I mean, I get shiver bumps thinking about it, just even now, Hendershot said. She lost interest in photography. At around 8 a.m., she was jolted awake by a man who had jumped on her back, pinning her to the bed. D.M.s lawsuit also named as defendants the agency that runs the program, Cocoon House, and two of its employees, Jana Hamilton and Wayne Nash. Monday 7:00am - 9:00pm. She was 18 years old, charged with a gross misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail. In August 2008, a stranger broke into the apartment of an 18-year-old Lynnwood woman, gagged her, bound her hands with a shoelace and raped her. The descriptions of the attacker were similar. In the foster system, Marie experienced physical abuse, sexual abuse and was exposed to drugs. Could the detectives connect OLearys Mazda with the blurry image of the white Mazda in the surveillance footage from Golden? HOURS. He asked if the rapist was real and she said "no." He looked confused and shocked as he stepped out into the bright winter sun. Marie said the knife was hers that it had come from the kitchen, and was what the rapist had used to threaten her. He gripped a silver and black gun. Years before the #MeToo movement gave voice to women previously coerced into silence over historic sexual abuse, Marie's story exemplified the disbelief and callous treatment often shown to sexual assault survivors. In the kitchen, he went to the knife block and removed a black-handled blade from the top row, far left. We pride ourselves on the genuine care and technical excellence we provide for our valued guests and are . Open the door, she shouted repeatedly. At the time, police had labeled the case a burglary. In addition, Mason had received a tip that Marie was unhappy with her apartment. discuss pitfalls and best practices of sex crimes investigations. She moved into the Alderbrooke Apartments, a woodsy complex that advertises proximity to a mall and views of the Cascades. One night I did try to walk to the store by myself and felt like I hallucinated someone following me, she says. Gina is survived by her parents, Terrance and Jennifer; her husband, Andy; her children, Carter (19), Noah (17) and Chase (13 . Her birthplace is Lynnwood, Washington, USA, and she is 32 years old. had been arguing, and the other a friend who had spoken to D.M. I didnt want it to get back to Marie, Peggy says. She went to a conference room and waited. Peggy didnt have any. But he did say Marie had told him: When she tried calling him that morning, she had used her toes, because she was tied up. She had been alone in her apartment the previous evening. At the hospital, medical staff collected more than a dozen swabs from Marie. They needed more information. . Both laces had come from Maries black tennis shoes, in the living room. Lynnwood police found Marie south of Seattle, Washington and told her what had happened. In 2008, Marie's case was one of four labeled unfounded by the Lynnwood police, according to . I was in group homes, too. Through friends, Marie met Jordan Schweitzer, a high school student working at a McDonalds. Just like in the Netflix series, Marie was a foster child, with a troubled upbringing. Roll back over, he told her and she did, and then he raped her, and while he raped her he ran his gloved hands over her. When Galbraith talked to her husband, also a police officer, he observed similarity with an incident reported to his police department in Westminster. [27][28] Mason was interviewed for the book, but Rittgarn refused to speak to the authors without being paid. Though the degraded DNA lifted from the crime scenes could not definitively match OLearys DNA, it could show that a male from his family line had most likely committed the crime. OLeary had been stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord from November 2006 through September 2009, when he moved to Colorado, according to prosecutors in King and Snohomish counties. The hour-long episode features Ira Glass, Ken Armstrong and Robyn Semien and includes interviews with Marie, Mason and two of Marie's foster parents. [6] The teams decided to collaborate. There was something about how she said it just made me question whether or not shed actually been raped, Shannon said on Anatomy of Doubt.. And she is resilient. Nobody collects such data. He knew that the Army had a sample of his DNA. The search of the home validated the detectives investigation. He wore a gray hoodie, baggy gray sweatpants and gray slip-on houseshoes. The man wore a condom, she believed. He tied her hands behind her back with a lace from her tennis shoe, blindfolded her and gagged her. I pretty much just cried, Marie says. There was something else she had to do. Delivering it crushed her. It won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting and the 2015 George Polk Award for Justice Reporting. And all those sliding glass doors ridiculously easy to pick, when they werent left unlocked, which so often they were. Following this, and Marie's conflicting account of when she phoned a friend, Mason and Rittgarn made Marie repeat her story, Rittgarn saying that he disbelieved her. All of Maries peers gathered in a written statement, describing what happened in early life and was the. 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