A Letter.

I've written hundreds of thousands of words in my lifetime. None of them were as important as the ones below. It's the thing I'm most proud of writing, and I feel like I'm finally in a position where I'm comfortable sharing it. This is what I wrote to the Ohio Parole Board when Mark was up for parole in 2014.

Members Of the Parole Review Board,

My name is ______________, and I am writing regarding the parole hearing of inmate _______, Mark ______.

I first became a victim of Mr ______ in 1989, when I was 14 years old. For the next four years, I was subjected to continuous sexual and physical abuse, and emotional manipulation. For four long years I allowed myself to be tormented by this monster.

Mr ______could argue that I willingly moved in with him after I turned 18. He would be accurate in that argument, to an extent. The closest thing I know of to compare my situation to is the Stockholm Syndrome. I don't know if it's the correct comparison, but it's all I know.

The truth is, I was deathly afraid of Mr ______. He repeatedly warned me during the course of the four years he abused me that if I ever left him, or ever reported him to the authorities, he would hurt me in ways I couldn't imagine.

It is because of this fear, this intimidation, that I was too afraid to testify against Mr ______ when he was finally arrested.

For twenty years I have regretted that decision.

Through countless hours of counseling, hundreds of dollars spent on antidepressants and antianxiety medications, and a failed suicide attempt, I feel like I have suffered enough. The emotional damage that would be done to me if Mr ______ were to be released would be immeasurable.

Mr ______ abused and molested me in a very calculated and strategic manner. His planned evil behaviors were not impulsive acts. It is clear he thoughtfully and carefully strategized how, when, and where he would assault his victims. During the four years Mr ______ abused me, he told me in an almost bragging manner about people he abused before me and during the same time period as me. I am aware of the numerous lives he severely impacted, including several mentally and/or physically handicapped students who had the misfortune of riding the bus Mr ______ drove when working as a bus driver for the _________ school district. He habitually sought victims who he deemed weak, such as myself, or those who had no way of telling on him, such as the unfortunate handicapped children.

Mr ______'s actions and choices speak to the core of his character: devious, self-serving, fraudulently manipulative - essentially, a psychopath.

I am aware Mr ______ was sentenced to a maximum of fifty years of incarceration. If justice is to be served to myself and the numerous other vulnerable victims, I plead that Mr ______ serve his full fifty years sentence. Releasing him earlier would not only be an injustice to all of his victims, it would also put potential new victims in harms way. While sexual offender monitoring has certainly improved in the past twenty years, a calculated sub-human of Mr _____'s make up will never allow others around him to be safe. He WILL find a way to beat the system, I assure you.

I respectfully request the State Board of Parole deny Mr ______ his current and any future bids for freedom and that he be held fully accountable for his crimes. The 25 years I have had to live with the issues that stemmed from being his victim have not been enough time for me to heal. Twenty years in prison cannot have been enough time for a serial child molester to make amends for one victim. Let alone the countless victims this monster victimized.

I thank you for taking the time to read my letter, and I hope I have been able to provide insight in this matter.

Thank you,
________