Bri’s Story: My Army Recruiter Sexually Assaulted Me

It was late 1997 and I was joining the US Army Reserves out of Durham, NC. My recruiter took a liking to me that went too far. He would call me at my mom’s house and tell me he needed to come pick me up to bring me to the recruiting office to go over some papers. Once there he showed me graphic porography and asked me what I though about it. I got scared as we were alone and it was after the office was closed. He sat next to me and then began grabbing and groping at me, pushing me down, kissing me and grinding on me. I was very scared, would he hurt me, would he kill me, would he deny my access to the military, were the thoughts in my head. I insisted I wasn’t ready for all that and I needed to go home before my mother worried. After the last attack incident at the recruiters office he continued to call me at all hours of the night. At 2am my mother answered and then asked me why a strange man was asking for me. I told her who it was and to hang up. Shortly thereafter he started showing up in front of my house late at night. He would call and tell me he was so unhappy with his wife and just wanted to kiss me and feel me. I told him to stop and when he didn’t I called Army command and reported him. The next day a woman of higher rank called me and asked me for all the details which l gave. I requested a new recruiter. As fate would have it my recruiter was simply reassigned to the Raleigh MEPS and on my day of processing into the Army who do you think I had to sit in front of?! You guessed it, my assailant. He was promoted.