Chessy Prout, St. Paul’s Sex Assault Survivor, Speaks Out For The First Time

NEW HAMPSHIRE
The Daily Beast

Lizzie Crocker

The teenage victim of a high-profile campus sexual assault has revealed her identity for the first time–along with her plan to help other survivors.

In an interview with NBC’s Today, Chessy Prout, now 17, told Savannah Guthrie that she hoped going public with her story would send a message to other victims of sexual assault that they “don’t have to be ashamed either.”

It’s been more than two years since Prout was assaulted by Owen Labrie, now 20, at the elite St. Paul’s School in New Hampshire. “I feel ready to stand up and own what happened to me, and I’m going to make sure that other people–other boys and girls–know that they can own it too.”

One night in late May of 2014, Prout had agreed to meet with Owen in a planned encounter that arose from the so-called “Senior Salute,” an unofficial tradition at St. Paul’s wherein male and female upperclassmen attempted to hook up with younger students before graduating.

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