General Discussion

trust your gut and don't be afraid to get away as quickly as possible, however possible. Take reasonable risks to get away if necessary.

An example from when I was 17 and escaped from what would have been a kidnapping and sexual assault.

It was a Saturday morning in summer, 1967. I was waiting at a bus stop on the corner of the block that we lived on. A light green Mustang pullled up to the curb and the driver asked if I wanted a lift. That did not sound at all unusual to me. My father often offered a ride when he drove by that bus stop if he saw a neighbor waiting for a bus.

I could not see the man clearly, but the only person that I knew who had a light green Mustang was the realtor who was handling the sale of my parents' house. I had babysat his kids a few times.

So I got into the car. When I saw the man's face, it was NOT our realtor. His eyelids were droopy, and what I could see of his eyes looked a little glassy. His face was bristly, like he had not shaved in a couple days. But he pulled away from the curb before I could get back out of the car.

My body and mind went on full alert. He asked where I was going and I said downtown to meet some friends who were waiting for me. (A lie.) He said we would take a ride first and patted my leg. I said, "I think you've got the wrong idea." His voice got surly and mean. He said, "Hey, girlie. You don't get something for nothing. It's time you learned that."

While we were talking, my mind was rapidly trying to figure out how to get out of the car. I knew that I had to get out ASAP, before he drove too far or I might never get away.

I knew that there was a 5 point intersection a couple blocks ahead. He would have to slow down there to a near stop or full stop. I lifted my purse to my right shoulder and leaned against the passenger door as if I was relaxing so that I could touch the handle without him seeing me do it. When we reached the intersection, I opened the door.

As I was getting out, he grabbed my left wrist in his hand. I have very small wrists. I turned my arm and hand so that my wrist slid right through his hand and continued stepping out of the car. The car was still moving, although slowly, and I almost fell into the street. But even if I had fallen, there were a lot of people at that busy intersection so I could have screamed for help if I needed to.

I regained my balance and ran all the way back to our house, breathless and trembling. Locked both doors. My parents were not home. I did not go back outdoors until my boyfriend got off work and came to pick me up.

It did not seem dangerous to me to accept a ride from someone I knew. But when I realized that it was a stranger who looked freaky, instead of panicking, I looked for an opportunity to get out soon and did not let the fact that the car was still moving stop me. After the fact, I realized that I should have looked inside the car at the driver before getting in. But by a freaky coincidence, the car was exactly the same as the car of someone I did know. I was too young and trusting to think that it could be a stranger.