Michelle Redden

James Island Charter High School

Class of 1991

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Michelle Redden - Class of 1991 - James Island Charter High School

First Name	Michelle
Last Name	Redden
Graduation Year	Class of 1991
Gender	Female
About Me	Today is a bit brighter than my days in November 2011. It was the point when I had realized I'd lost everything I had fighting the battle Holding Coach Charlie Smith and Charleston County School District accountable for their actions in 1988-1989. ONLY BY THE GRACE OF GOD HAVE I SURVIVED! HE HAS GIVEN ME STRENGTH AND CARRIED ME THROUGH MY LOWEST MOMENTS. I PRAISE AND WORSHIP YOU LORD ALMIGHTY!!! The scars left from this legal/criminal battle alone beginning in 2007 thru the turning point of my life in November 2011 are still very much noticeable to me in my everyday life. Again I say, ohhhh what a long and endless battle it has been that stands to go on for possibly another 3 years…. Seven years thus far and continuing the count! In my eyes, it was worth it as long as Coach Charlie Smith did not have the opportunity to harm another student as he did me. If I could save just one young female from having to endure the things I did, maybe I saved a life.. Just maybe I saved her from the nightmares that I live with. Some of you may disagree and have strong opinions. I say this to you,,, YOU WERE NOT THERE! I WAS. YOU WERE NOT ALONE AT CHARLIE SMITH'S HORSE STABLES WITH HIM, I WAS. YOU WERE NOT IN THE VEHICLE WITH HIM, I WAS! SO, SAVE YOUR EVIL COMMENTS AND OPINIONS BECAUSE THEY MEAN NOTHING TO ME! ****************************************************** WRITTEN IN NOVEMBER 2011 I am a sexual abuse victim and have lost everything in the process of attempting to bring the teacher that victimized and sexually abused me to justice. Ohhhh, what a long and endless battle it has been.... After having lost my home, my job, and filing bankruptcy I can finally say OUT LOUD.... My name is Michelle Redden and I AM a sexual abuse survivor! As I sit at my desk with $47.00 to my name and broken by the very system that I spent years believing in and working for, I'm going to share my story and pray that god places my words before someone going through something similar to encourage them to tied a knot and hang on as I did. Unfortunately, when you say, how much worse can this get, the truth is it doesn't get better, it only gets worse and continues. When I was 15 years old (now 38), I was victimized and sexually abuse by one of my high school teacher/softball coach in a public school system. He gained the trust of my mother and myself. This man owned a horse and boarded it at a horse stable using the horse to introduce me to his trust among other things. What 15 year old girl doesn't want a horse? This man knew what he was doing and I'm positive I was not his first or last victim. I now know after having continuously over the past four years battled with the county public school system, county law enforcement, county solicitor's office, county public school board, what occurred in a public school system has made it just that much harder to bring this man to justice. I have noticed if a sexual abuse case in the Charleston, South Carolina area arises, everyone runs with it as long as it is a private school and not a public school. It is as if Charleston County has ownership or partnership over the ones who could make a difference but won't speak up. Ironically, look at what happened to me, no wonder no one speaks up. If it is a public school, it is hidden and the issue is protected as much as possible. The local news media won't even touch sexual abuse by teachers in a Charleston County School and if they do, it is mentioned maybe one time. Trust me, I've lived this issue and nightmare! To top it off, I have worked in Law Enforcement over the past 15 years as a Detention and Corrections Officer. I often wonder if anyone has ever asked the question, why would I lie? I had everything to loose and very little if to gain if anything.. Today, as I look back, I went all in and lost. I didn't just lose, I lost big! In ten more years I would have drawn a full pension from the South Carolina Police Retirement System for having 25 years of service. I've lost the hope of drawing that pension in 10 more years and since the Sheriff has been the Sheriff for 23 years and retired from the Air Force as a Colonel, no one is going to challenge him. Charleston County is his play-land and he can do what ever he chooses. I know that may sound harsh, but it is simply the truth and spelled out bluntly. In 2007 when this battle began for me, I had great credit, just purchase my first home, had a new vehicle, and made great money doing what I was good at. Today, nearly four and a half years later, I have $47.00 to my name, getting ready to loose my vehicle, lost my home, lost my job, applied for food assistance, and wondering how I am going to pay the electric, water, sewer, phone, and cable this month. Again I ask, why would I lie? I dare someone to say for money or attention!... There's no money in these cases and there never will be as long as they fall under a torts claim capping the amount that can be recovered from a public school system. In my profession, we have always had it hammered into us that we NEVER speak to media or anyone in the public without the approval of the appropriate person within the agency I have worked for. I am mostly shy around individuals I do not know and do not seek to be in a spotlight. So you can pretty much rule out attention. In 1989 I attempted suicide at the high school and ultimately quit school. My highest grade of my completion is the 8th grade. Today, in looking back to that time, you would think me having attempted suicide would have set off bells and whistles to school administrators. I'm convinced today that they did not care about my well being and refused to acknowledge the abuse and fix the issue. If someone would just stand up, be accountable and say, "We're sorry for not paying attention and protecting you," that would go far with me. My hope of that ever happening is gone because of the things the school district/teacher has done thus far for example telling my stepfather that I said he sexually abused me attempting to play us against each other. My stepfather and mother are divorced and and have been so for about four years. The school district and teachers attorneys were not counting on the fact that my stepfather and I still speak which we do at least weekly. Who could/would say something like that and have a conscious and be able to sleep at night? I have found that many do not believe in repressed memories throughout my battle, but I am here to tell everyone that disbelieves repressed memories exist can go to hell! There is such a thing as I have lived it resulting in me struggling with PTSD as the memories began to come back in 2007! That very struggle nearly ended my life because the battle to deal with the issue/memories seemed to be larger than anything I could comprehend. Meanwhile while working for the Charleston County Sheriff's Office, I reported the sexual abuse to the Detective Division. That was a nightmare in itself. The result was an attempt to shut me up buy intimidating me, the Detective handling the case LYING on her incident report, Me reporting it to internal affairs and SLED and the complaint going ignored, putting that I had been "Raped" into the interdepartmental computer system for all of my co-workers to see, cutting my overtime salary back resulting in a extremely reduced paycheck while others were allowed to continue to work the overtime, a supervisor threatening me advising me to let the issue go if I liked my job, Internal Affairs harassing me while discovery was being conducted regarding the school teacher, a fellow officer pointing a gun at me in the parking lot and the reporting to a Lieutenant going ignored, just to name a few. Four solid years of hell and it's a wonder I am breathing today, but I made it! Nothing is going to shut me up, NOTHING! I'm sitting here asking myself, How can this much be done to one person? My understanding is that there was another parent or two that made a report to the South Carolina Department of Education regarding the teacher taking some inappropriate video footage during a swim practice. The results, issue was hushed and kept quiet resulting in nothing happening. My understanding is that when the teacher retired after nearly 30 years at the same school, he was a physical education teacher and swim coach. Female students in bathing suits, how convenient. When he sexually abused me, he was a World Geography Teacher and a first year softball coach. Twenty-five or so years later he maneuvered himself into a position having more access to female students.. I now know that no one wants this to hit the news media because I KNOW he has more victims and they would most likely come out from everywhere, especially after him having taught for so long at the same school. This teacher deserves to be in jail for the rest of his life and the school district deserves to be held accountable for their negligence in protecting me, but I have found deaf ears everywhere. In seeking an apology that I will most likely never hear, I'm lost everything and am left sitting at my desk with $47.00 to my name. Unfortunately for the County of Charleston, the Charleston County School District/Board, the Charleston County Solicitor's Office, SLED, and the Charleston County Sheriff's Office, my faith is much stronger than them combined... My name IS Michelle Redden and I AM a sexual abuse survivor ...(read more)