Gina Vanished Nearly A Year After Amanda Berry
Amanda Berry was abducted April 21, 2003 at West 110th and Lorain Avenue.Gina was abducted about a year later just five blocks away and within a block from the McDonalds that Amanda Berry worked at.
Michelle Knight, who was the first girl abducted on April 23, 2002, was last seen at West 106th Street and Loraine Avenue.
Gina Is Rescued And Her Family Celebrates Her Return
DeJesus, who was a 14-year-old girl when she was snatched off a Cleveland street, did not say a word or pose for the cameras. A relative protectively put an arm around her and rushed her into the house.But before the once-lost girl emerged from the mini van, her jubilant dad Felix pumped the air with his fist and hugged relatives and cops.
Cleveland Kidnapping Survivor Michelle Knight Talks About New Life Marriage
Knight was 21 when she was kidnapped in 2002, the first of Castros victims. He raped her repeatedly, police said, impregnating her five times and beating her so badly she miscarried each time.
Now 37, Knight says she no longer has nightmares about Castro, who hanged himself in prison not long after his arrest. But she still lives at the edge of despair.
I do have triggers, she said in an interview with NBC News. Certain smells. Light fixtures with chain pulls.
Knight said the chain pulls remind her of the chains Castro used to bound her. She said Castro used to douse himself with Old Spice and Tommy Hilfiger colognes, so now she cant stand those scents.
But more than anything, she cant bear the smell of bacon grease.
One of the meals he made for us was hot dogs, rice and eggs, all cooked in bacon grease and all served together in a bowl, she said. I get a nauseous feeling when I smell that.
Knight, who still lives in the Cleveland area, married her husband, Miguel, in 2015 and released a second memoir this month, Life After Darkness.
Now I have a chance to make my own destiny.
Michelle Knight
I have found joy in my life, Knight, who has changed her name to Lily Rose Lee, recently told Megyn Kelly on NBC’s “Today.”
Joy is a feeling Knight couldn’t imagine she would ever feel again after she was kidnapped.
Castro had told her that “happiness was not for me and that it would never happen to me, she said. But now I have a chance to make my own destiny.
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The Forgotten Victim: Clevelands Michelle Knight
Knight family
Loud cheers greeted Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus as they arrived at their homes Wednesday afternoon, almost one decade after they were abducted, subjected to prolonged sexual and psychological abuse, and apparently bound with ropes and chains, in the Cleveland house of horrors.
The happy homecoming came on the same day that 52-year-old Ariel Castro was charged with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape, and police officers pulled out more than 200 items of evidence from Ariel Castros home on Seymour Avenue.
Castro reportedly only let the women, whom he allegedly forced to wear disguises, outside twice in 10 years to walk from the house to the garage. Castro was arraigned this morning in a Cleveland Municipal Court and is being held on bond for $2 million in each case. His brothers, Onil and Pedro, were not charged in the kidnapping after police interviewed the women and Castro, who waived his right to remain silent and spoke with investigators.
Berry, 27, and her 6-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, arrived first to her sisters home with a police escort. The front porch was covered with balloons, cards, and teddy bears. A large sign read Welcome Home Amanda. A few hours later, 23-year-old DeJesus, who pulled a hoodie over her face, gave a thumbs up to the crowd before she ran into her familys home, which was being protected by the red beretsporting Guardian Angels.
We need to get all the family together, she added.
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Dr Phil Says ‘no One Has Changed Me Like Michelle Knight’
Michelle Knight, the first of three Cleveland women abducted by Ariel Castro, has been interviewed by Phil McGraw for a two-part installment of his syndicated show, “Dr. Phil.” The episodes will air at 5 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, Nov. 5-6, on WKYC Channel 3.
CLEVELAND Ohio — Phil McGraw, the clinical psychologist and television personality known as Dr. Phil, says that an interview with Michelle Knight is one of the most profound on-camera encounters he has had since launching his syndicated television program in 2002.
McGraw’s interview with Knight, the first of three Cleveland women abducted by Ariel Castro, will air as a two-part installment of “Dr. Phil.” The episodes will air at 5 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 5-6, on WKYC Channel 3.
The “Dr. Phil” show first announced that the interview would air in three parts, starting Monday. Producers confirmed late Friday that the format had been changed to two parts, starting Tuesday.
Knight disappeared in August 2002. She was 21 at the time.
Knight, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus were held captive by Castro for more than 10 years. Berry was kidnapped in April 2003, the day before her 17th birthday. DeJesus was 14 when she disappeared in April 2004.
Castro was found dead on Sept. 3, hanging by a bedsheet in his cell at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient, south of Columbus.
The press release says that “Knight thought her only escape from this relentless punishment would be death.”
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Starved Kidnap Victim Michelle Knight Like ‘little Girl’ When Rescued
Gritty survivor says she has become a “butterfly.”
Three Women Kidnapped in Cleveland for a Decade Face Their Abductor
CLEVELAND Aug. 1, 2013 — Michelle Knight, one of three women who survived more than a decade of captivity in Ariel Castro’s Cleveland house, was so emaciated that the rescuing police officer initially thought she was a little girl.
She was also so scared that during her rescue she had trouble breathing.
That portrait of Knight, who is believed to have suffered the most abuse at the hands of Castro, was detailed by police at Castro’s sentencing hearing today.
But before the hearing began, Knight declared that she was no longer that battered and terrified person.
“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, she became a butterfly,” Knight wrote on the eve of Castro’s sentencing hearing. Her message was posted on the Cleveland police department’s website.
“You don’t know how much I appreciate all your time and work collecting cards and gifts from people for me and the other girls. I am overwhelmed by the amount of thoughts, love and prayers expressed by complete strangers. It is comforting. Life is tough, but I’m tougher!” she wrote.
Knight, 32, not only issued a statement of gratitude, but is expected to be the only one of Castro’s three victims to appear in court today to personally read her impact statement before her tormentor is sentenced to life in prison plus 1,000 years.
She Was Abducted By Her Childhood Friends Dad Ariel Castro
If you watch the Americas Most Wanted video above, you might find something hair raising.Host Tom Morris interviews the last person to have seen Gina DeJesus: her name is Arlene Castro, suspected kidnapper Ariel Castros daughter.
Arlene and Gina were childhood friends.Slate.com reports:
Arlene Castro was a friend and classmate of Gina DeJesus at Wilbur Wright Middle School in Cleveland. She told the showwhich profiles missing-persons cases to draw attention to themthat she was walking with DeJesus and borrowed 50 cents from the then-14-year-old to call her mother to ask if the two could hang out at Ginas. When her mother said no, Castro said they parted ways.
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Ariel Castros Testimony Reveals More About Us Than It Does About Him
Ariel Castro kidnapped, enslaved, physically abused, and brutally raped three women for 11 years. The narrow room he used to hold them captive had an eerie display of Disney posters and a bed lined with stuffed animals. All of the windows were covered with thick planks of wood to make sure the women couldn’t have any contact with the outside world. The doors were locked from the outside.
The house contained more than 92 pounds of rusted iron chains that Castro used to bind the women in the room. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were starved, fed only once a day and were often forced to urinate in plastic bags that were seldom collected. It wasn’t a room it was a dungeon. It wasn’t a life it was hell.
After the 53-year-old rapist, pedophile, child abductor and, horrifying human-being was given life in prison plus 1,000 years and charged with more than 900 criminal counts, he gave a testimony that shocked the whole nation. What was more disturbing than his narcissism or lack of empathy for the horrific crimes he committed were the excuses he used to justify his obsession with raping and hurting women.
For starters, he blamed the good ol’ male hormones: “I just acted on sexual instincts,” he told the judge.
He claims he has a “sex addiction.” Despite the court finding he has no mental illness, he explained that he watched porn, in his words, “to the point that it makes me impulsive.” So first: blame porn, not me.
Sociology Course Builds Bridges Between Students And Disability Community
Written by Pam MoorePhotography by Rebecca Devereaux
Though books and lectures are the foundations of traditional academic learning, some lessons require hands-on experience.
Jessica Boyers ’20 and Professor Michelle Janning are creating an opportunity for Whitman students and local young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to take advantage of all of the above. With lessons from the instructors – and from each other – they’ll learn what it means to be an inclusive community.
Growing up in Davis, California, with her parents and her older sister, Boyers was always active, playing multiple sports and working part-time.
“I’ve always loved being around people,” said Boyers, who is majoring in chemistry. Meanwhile, she noticed a family member with disabilities was often excluded from social gatherings and struggled to find a sense of belonging. This made Boyers acutely aware of how fortunate she was.
It also inspired her to be a change agent.
“I wanted to invest my time in making sure that people feel included,” she said. As a first-year student, Boyers joined the Buddy Program, a student-led initiative through the Student Engagement Center that gives Whitman students and Walla Walla adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities the chance to forge friendships through social and recreational activities. She interned at the Walla Walla Valley Disability Network this summer and now serves as the Buddy Program coordinator.
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‘the Closest Parallel Would Be Prisoners Of War’: Gina Dejesus And Michelle Knight Will Suffer Life
Two of the women imprisoned in a Cleveland house in conditions described as similar to a prisoner of war camp suffered from severe malnutrition and will require long-term therapy for injuries such as hearing loss and joint and muscle damage, two sources with direct knowledge said.
The basement where the women were held had chains coming from the wall, and dog leashes attached to the ceiling, the sources said. The women were restrained with them and duct tape in “stress positions” for long periods that left them with bed sores and other injuries, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the investigation, who asked not to be identified.
Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were in worse condition than Amanda Berry when they emerged from at least nine years in captivity at the home of Ariel Castro, accused of kidnapping and raping the women. Castro appeared to treat Berry better than the other two, the sources said.
“There is a reason why you have only seen a picture of Amanda ,” said one of the sources, referring to the condition of DeJesus and Knight.
Berry, who broke down a door to freedom a week ago with the help of a neighbor, and then told police of the other women, was photographed smiling immediately after the dramatic rescue. Berry has a six-year-old daughter fathered by Castro in captivity.
In contrast, DeJesus wore a hooded sweat-shirt covering her head when she first went home last week, and Knight was hospitalized for days, and has stayed out of public view.
Michelle Had A Difficult Life Before Being Kidnapped
Michelle was reportedly abused by her mother and had a hard life before she was kidnapped her in 2004. Her mother Barbara Knight said that she now lives in Florida and hopes that Michelle will forgive her and move in with her there. But Michelle is reportedly not speaking at all to her mom.
I dont want her to think that I forgot about her. Hopefully whatever happened between us, if something did, I hope it heals because I really want to take her back to Florida with me.
Michelle is reportedly so disappointed with her mom that she went to fellow survivor Gina DeJesus.
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Police Barely Searched For Michelle Everyone Assumed She Ran Away
Michelle had been victimized even before her disappearance. Prior to her losing custody of her son, her mother said she had a difficult time in school and was even involved in an assault that wasnt taken very seriously by police. The Daily Mail further reports:
Michelle Knights grandmother, Deborah Knight, said the family, after speaking with police and social workers, had accepted that she likely left on her own free will. They believed she was angry that her son had been taken into custody. Michelle was never registered as missing on the Ohio Missing Persons website.
The Cleveland polices missing-person report detailing Michelle Knights disappearance is brief, stating that she had a mental condition and frequently was confused by her surroundings.
Michelle Knight: Top 10 Facts You Need To Know
Information continues to surface on the most obscure Cleveland kidnapping victim, Michelle Knight. Knight appeared in court on August 1 to speak at Ariel Castros sentencing hearing. The monster from Cleveland agreed to plea deal that includes a life sentence plus 1000 years in prison, ensuring that he will never see the light of day again, reports CNN.
Knight just prior to speaking at Ariel Castros sentencing hearing.
Knight told the hearing:
I worried what was going to happen to me and the other girls every day.
Later Knight pointedly told Castro:
I spent 11 years in hell now your hell is just beginning.
Heres what you need to know.
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April 2013 Marks Ginas 9th Year Since Her Disappearance
On April 2, 2013, marking Ginas ninth anniversary since her disappearance, a prayer service was held in Cleveland.ABC affiliate News Net 5 reports:
It was nine years ago on Tuesday that Gina DeJesus disappeared on her way home from school.The Cleveland teenager had just left Wilbur Wright Middle School when she vanished April 2, 2004. She was last seen around West 105 Street and Lorain Avenue.On Tuesday night, family, friends and community activists gathered at that site for a prayer service for Gina. The gathering was also used to raise awareness about human trafficking.Ginas mother, Nancy Ruiz, has always believed her daughter was kidnapped and sold into the trade.Today, my sole purpose for today is I want to have it for prayers for other families that have missing children of loved ones, Ruiz said.
Who Is Gina Dejesus
Gina DeJesus became a kidnapping statistic when she disappeared at age 14 while walking home from school. She was imprisoned with two other young women, Michelle Knight and Amanda Berry, by former school bus driver Ariel Castro, the estranged father of one of DeJesus’s friends. After a nearly 10-year period of captivity, which included alleged beatings and starvation, DeJesus and her fellow captors were rescued by neighbors in 2013.
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Michelle Vanished On August 23 2002 Near Her Cousins Home In Cleveland
According to Martin Flask, Clevelands director of public safety, Knight was 22 when she was reported missing after last being seen near her cousins Cleveland home at West 106th Street and Lorain Avenue.
Alarmingly, she was being held captive by suspected kidnapper Ariel Castro just three miles away.
Amanda Berry Gina Dejesus And Michelle Knight Were Held Captive For A Decade
THE THREE WOMEN held captive in a Cleveland home for a decade issued a YouTube video to thank the public for their support and financial backing that is allowing them to restart their lives.
Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight broke their public silence about their ordeal in the three-minute, 30-second video issued by their public relations team.
The women had gone missing separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16, and 20 years old.
The three women appeared upbeat in the video, although Knight seemed nervous as she spoke about building a brand new life.
Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight the three women held captive in a Cleveland home for a decade broke their public silence in a three-minute video.
Ariel Castro has pleaded not guilty to a 329-count indictment alleging he kidnapped them off the streets and held them captive in his two-story home.
Castro, a 52-year-old former bus driver, fathered a six-year-old daughter with Berry and is accused of starving and punching Knight, causing her to miscarry. He was arrested 6 May, shortly after Berry broke through a door at the home and yelled to neighbours for help.
Here is the video of the three women thanking their supporters:
– Additional reporting AP
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