SEC=UGA Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 Anyone else think she may be making this up for publicity? Kinda like the dude hitchhiking across country claiming he got shot, when in fact he shot himself? CBS/WWMT/AP) TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - Five weeks ago, a 27-year-old Chicago woman set off on a 1,500-mile rowing journey on Lake Michigan to raise money for breast cancer survivors, blogging along the way. Police say someone following her voyage online may have used the information to harm her in a sexual assault. The alleged victim, Jenn Gibbons, says she decided to blog about the attack, too, writing, "I know that I had a choice in telling people about the details of my attack, particularly that it was a sexual assault. To go through this at all, let alone publicly, is extremely difficult." CBS affiliate WWMT reported on the blog's shocking change of storyline. Police say Gibbons, who set off on June 15, was sexually assaulted about 4 a.m. Sunday in the vessel's cabin while moored along the shore in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The station reported she's going public about the ordeal to help catch the assailant and send a message of strength to others who've been assaulted. According to WWMT, state police investigators near where the attack happened in St. Ignace said the assailant may have traveled a significant distance. Gibbons is co-founder of a rowing team for breast cancer survivors. She was making the trip to raise money for new boats. Originally from Battle Creek, Mich., she planned for the excursion to be the first solo rowing trip from Illinois to Michigan along the lake's entire perimeter. Gibbons says she will finish her journey, now by bike and boat. But she'll no longer travel alone. She blogged, "I still believe that life is a gift, even when it's scary and unfair," she wrote. "I still believe that life offers us the privilege, the opportunity, and the responsibility, to give something back, even when people try to take things away from us." The suspect is described as a white male in his 30s, approximately 5'8" to 6'0" tall, with a fair amount of facial stubble. He's said to have light eyes, an average to athletic build and short, well-kept hair. He was wearing a grayish-green T-shirt, jean shorts and tennis shoes. A bright yellow Jeep Wrangler was seen in the area, with a spare tire on the back and a tire cover bearing a yellow smiley face on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh 0ne Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 She's kinda hot. If she's blogging about the remote locations she's in publicly, is it really surprising that some sicko stalker tracked her down and raped her? I'm not going to go as far as saying she was asking for it, but I will say there is some sense of irresponsibility on her end that may have led to the attack. I also hope they find the scumbag and rip his testicles off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevegrab Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 Maybe, depends whether there's any good reason to doubt her story and think she was just trying to get attention. Just because there's another case where somebody claiming a form of attack was lying doesn't mean she is. Besides that, you've probably done plenty of other things that will get you into hell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slambo Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 "The suspect is described as a white male in his 30s, approximately 5'8" to 6'0" tall, with a fair amount of facial stubble. He's said to have light eyes, an average to athletic build and short, well-kept hair. He was wearing a grayish-green T-shirt, jean shorts and tennis shoes. A bright yellow Jeep Wrangler was seen in the area, with a spare tire on the back and a tire cover bearing a yellow smiley face on it." I used to see a guy in my neighorhood all the time matching that description in a jeep just like that, smiley face and all. Haven't seen him around in a couple of months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 My first thought upon reading the story would not be that she's making it up, but you never know. It happens too often. I've often thought that the penalty for false accusations is not nearly harsh enough. It should be comparable to the penalty for the crime falsely accused. So if you cry rape and some poor shmo is arrested, loses his job, name dragged through the mud, you should go to prison just for that alone. If the shmo is convicted and spends one day in prison, your sentence for the false accusation should be equal to his for the rape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuke'em ttg Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 woman loses vibrator in lake michigan, still looking....alone on the water yer mind can play tricks on ya, i get that shes strong and the whole survivor thing but a trama like that is sounding like "Oh well, whatdaya do....kinda fishy, i hope this didn't happen to'r Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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