by Amy Pollpeter (Author)
1 in 6 women reports being raped. 75-80% of rape victims know their attacker. Only 25-30% of rape victims report their crime to the police. Like pretty much every other woman, Amy Pollpeter never thought she would be a part of any of these statistics; but at the age of 16, she was raped by a former boyfriend and became a part of all three of these statistics. Even though she knew about rape, she always believed it happened to someone else. Not to someone like her. This is the story of her journey from brokenness as a victim to strength as a survivor. In the process she finds God, finds the true meaning of forgiveness, and develops a passion to raise awareness about sexual violence and bring hope to victims. Using both her own experience, and knowledge from her career as a forensic biologist, she dispels the long believed myths about rape - its prevalence, its victims, and its perpetrators. God's warm and loving light penetrated into her dark and secret silence to give her a voice. She hopes her story shines God's light into the darkness of other hurting people as well.
Author Biography
As a forensic scientist and survivor, Amy Pollpeter is well acquainted with the crime of sexual assault. Approximately 80% of her time is spent working sexual assault cases. She instructs law enforcement officers and forensic nurses on evidence collection in sexual assault cases. Her knowledge about this crime doesn't come just from the cases she has worked in her 7 years at a state crime laboratory however; she is also a survivor of this crime and knows how great of an effect it has on its victims. In addition to her role as an instructor, she has become a liaison between the crime laboratory and the sexual assault response teams. She has a passion for speaking to public groups to raise awareness of the crime of sexual assault. In addition to speaking to churches and public groups, Ms. Pollpeter has been a guest on a Christian radio show to discuss the topic of sexual assault and the Christian response to victims and perpetrators.