http://www.change.org/petitions/when-women-go-to-a-bar-they-are-ok-to-be-raped

On the morning of New Years Day in 2011 I was raped by an ex coworker named Kei Yokoyama.

I was so traumatized by the incident that I couldn’t even tell my friends and family what happened.

I was embarrassed and ashamed to let anyone know that this person took advantage of me while I was intoxicated.

At the hospital they notified the police for me and I filed a report with them. At the time the police were taking my case quite seriously.

Three days later I went to meet Detective Molina, an SVU investigator in Queens. When I got there Detective Molina told me that he had already called my job and told them what happened, even after I told him that I wanted him to try to be discreet.

He then proceeded to tell me that I didn’t have a case because I was drinking that night so my testimony could not be counted on.

He also said that he took statements from Kei Yokoyama, the man who raped me, and also from Yuki Yano another ex coworker of mine who was a friend of Kei.

He said their statements about what happened that night conflicted with mine.

This plus the fact that I was drunk and that I had waited more than a week to come forward made him come to the conclusion that he was not going to charge Kei Yokoyama with rape.

He refused to investigate further and closed the case.

Detective Molina’s last words to me were “Why don’t you just go back to Japan?”

I couldn’t believe that he said that to me.

If Detective Molina had done his job properly he would have realized that Kei Yokoyama and Yuki Yano were lying about what happened that night.

He would have investigated the facts and charged Kei Yokoyama  with rape.

My life would have turned out very different.

After that I went to my counselor from the Sexual Victims Unit at the hospital and they arranged for me to meet Mr. Ken Applebaum and Ms. Marjory Fisher from the Queens County District Attorney’s Office.

 

This is what they said to me.

“He didn’t use any weapons,

and he didn’t threaten you,

you’re not under 17 years of age,

and you waited to long to go to the hospital,

so its not rape.”

“What did you think would happen when you went to a bar and drank too much?”  They said they couldn’t believe I wanted to put this guy in jail over this.

I even asked them “Are you saying I was asking for him to do what he did to me?”

I could not believe my ears when they said “Yes!”

I asked them again just to be sure “Are you saying that if a woman goes to a bar and drinks she is asking to be raped?” and they said “Yes!”

What ever happened to women’s rights?

What ever happened to immigrants rights?

I’m Japanese, would they have treated me different if I weren’t Japanese?

I was devastated.

With the next New Years approaching, I couldn’t bear to spend it in New York after everything that happened,

so I went to Japan to spend time with my family and try to forget what I was going through, but the pain was to much for me to take.

In the early days of January 2012 I tried to commit suicide, but my mother found me and called 911.

It’s a miracle that I’m still alive. I should be dead but I’m not.

To be honest I’m not happy to be alive.

What I want is for people to know what happened to me.

I want the Queens Count District Attorneys Office to reopen and investigate my case.

I want you to tell people what I have told you.

I ask that you Please sign my petition so that my case can get reopened and investigated properly.

What I want is Justice.

Thank you for listening.

I’ve started the petition  and need your help to get it off the ground.

Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here’s the link:

http://www.change.org/petitions/when-women-go-to-a-bar-they-are-ok-to-be-raped