Cleveland Kidnapping Victims Appear For First Time To Thank Everyone For Support In New Video Appearance
After watching this video I’m sure you are going to feel how I do and have this overwhelming desire to want to hug all these girls SO HARD! Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight who were held prisoner by Ariel Castro and subjected to severe physical abuse and rape while being held captive in his Cleveland home have all kept a rather low profile since being rescued in May. I’m sure the girls and their families have wanted privacy in order to heal both mentally and physically. Michelle Knight had been beaten so badly by Castro that she required reconstructive surgery to her face after being rescued. Amanda Berry has a six-year-old daughter she gave birth to while in captivity. All of the girls have received therapy since being rescued and will continue to be under the care of doctors for many years to come. But watching this video will make you feel like they will be okay, that there is hope and that even under the worst circumstances and being subjected to this horrific ordeal these girls, our girls, have had the strength and courage to start to heal. And for me it feels like that, that these girls are all of our girls, because I know so many of you cared so much and have been so emotionally invested in this case and have been keeping them in your thoughts.
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Ariel Castro has been ruled mentally fit to stand trial and he faces 329 charges of kidnapping, rape, and aggravated murder, the last charge due to the fact that he beat Michelle Knight so badly that she miscarried. From NBC.com:
Castro has pleaded not guilty to a 329 count indictment that includes multiple kidnapping and rape charges. He’s being held on an $8 million bond.
Authorities accuse him of kidnapping the women between 2002 and 2004 when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. A trial is tentatively scheduled for Aug. 5.Among the rape and kidnapping charges, Castro faces a charge of aggravated murder, as Knight told investigators Castro allegedly impregnated and then forced her to have a miscarriage during the time she was captive in his home.
This is such a terrifying case but the video released gives me hope that these brave women can have a future despite what they have been subjected to. One of the troubling aspects of this appearance is Gina only speaks one line in the video, and her mom does the majority of the speaking for her. Various reports have suggested that Gina rarely speaks to anyone outside of her family, but according to Radar Online she adopted one of Castro’s dogs that she helped care for while in captivity. We will never be able to fully understand all these women were subjected to, and I’m sure appearing on video was even difficult for them but they all look healthy and beautiful and at times even beatific. I know the trial will be difficult for them but seeing them and hearing them speak is so heartwarming and uplifting. I hope they continue to heal and recover and move on from their ordeal.
(Image: You Tube)
