Vicki's trip to Australia with her girlfriends was supposed to be the time of her life. The last thing she remembers before waking up in a hotel lobby bathroom, half dressed, was having a soda in the hotel lounge with a charming Australian man she and her friends had met while scuba diving. Her friends went to bed and she accepted the man's offer to stay and talk. She knew she had been sexually assaulted from the pain and bruising. Her purse, money and American passport also stolen.
The US Department of State estimates 68 million Americans travel overseas annually. Unfortunately, many become victims of sexual assault. Vicki is devastated. Besides the physical recovery, she must recover from the emotional and psychological scars her perpetrator has left. Vicki is working with one of our SASHAA Case Managers to navigate the legal and medical system when a sexual assault occurs in Australia, get her passport renewed, and get her back home to the USA.
Vicki will be able to get her passport renewed, pay for the hotel room, food and basic necessities until she feels well enough to travel back to the USA. She hopes the rape kit will identify her assailant. Medical tests will identify the drug that was used. Our SASHAA advocate is Vicki's lifeline to recovery. Vicki will be able to return home and begin healing with the free counseling we have arranged. She does not want her parents to know. Her girlfriends are supporting her emotionally.
According to RAINN, 208 thousand rapes occur in the USA annually. If we apply the same population proportion to the 68 million Americans that travel overseas every year, there would be 39,000 Americans raped in foreign countries annually. From the sexual assault victims that have contacted us in various foreign countries, they are extremely grateful for our help and assistance when no one else would or could provide the services we offer.