SOUTH HILL, Wash — Survivors of the South Hill rapist delivered impact statements Thursday as Kevin Coe, who spent four decades in prison, was approved for release near in Federal Way.
Coe, now 78, is believed to have carried out more than 40 sexual assaults in Spokane from the late 1970s until his arrest in 1981. He served time for one rape conviction after the Washington Supreme Court overturned three others in 1985.
At a hearing in Spokane County, four women recounted the trauma they say Coe inflicted on them more than 40 years ago. Some pleaded for accountability, while others said they have found freedom through forgiveness.
“I promised God that night that I would spend the rest of my life making sure that other survivors are able to get the help they need to overcome that one horrible incident,” said Shelly Monahan Cain, who told the court Coe raped and beat her after she left her radio station job on Sept. 9, 1979.
Others described their lingering anger and fear.
“You are the worst of the worst in Spokane,” one survivor said.
Another survivor shared through tears, “How dare you get out of jail and breathe the air … It’s not fair.”
A Spokane County judge said the testimony left a deep impression.
“I will leave here with a hole in my stomach and upward heart because the words do mean, and they do have impact — at least on me,” Hon. Julie McKay said.
State and independent psychologists testified Coe is unlikely to reoffend because of his age, heart disease, limited mobility and ongoing mental health issues. Survivors, however, said they will always live with the trauma and the fear of looking over their shoulders.
“If we were able to talk to Fred Coe in person, I would beg him to get help. I would beg for him to admit what he did, to ask forgiveness. I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Cain said.
The state has ordered Coe to live at the Win-Win Adult Family Home in Federal Way.
트위터 공유: 케빈 코 석방 후 생존자들의 고통 여전히