Teen speaks at RMU about sexual abuse and Marsy’s Law
Photo Credit: (MGN Online)
April 9, 2019
MOON TOWNSHIP – Sixteen-year-old Tommy Williams visited the RMU campus last Friday evening to discuss his experience with sexual abuse and the importance of Marsy’s Law.
Students piled into Hopwood Hall Friday evening to listen to guest speakers Tommy Williams and his mother, Kelly.
At the age of eight, Tommy was forced to perform explicit sexual acts on his half brother, Robert Chester Williams III. Tommy spoke about how this has heavily impacted his life over the last few years since he became open about what happened.
“I became really depressed,” Tommy admitted. “I felt like nobody loved me.”
Tommy was not the only one who had been sexually assaulted by Williams. Many of Tommy’s cousins were victims as well.
“We were all in the same situation,” Tommy said. “We couldn’t say anything to anybody because he had threatened to kill us if we did.”
Tommy, Kelly and a representative of Marsy’s Law also spoke about why Marsy’s Law is important. Marsy’s Law is a law derived from California that allows victims to be treated with fairness and respect in a court setting. Over the course of the trial for Williams, Tommy was, at first, denied the right to read his impact statement.
Although he was eventually permitted that right, this group emphasized how important it was that Marsy’s Law is enforced and that people spread the word about it, so victims like Tommy and his cousins are granted the rights they deserve.
