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North Carolina v. Everhardt6/13/1990
The State's evidence tended to show that defendant and the victim were married in July 1974 and divorced in October 1985. The couple separated in July 1984 after the occurrence of the events leading to defendant's conviction. The victim testified that for six successive evenings, beginning on 15 July 1984, defendant assaulted her sexually and subjected her to various humiliating acts. On the first evening, defendant bound the victim, pointed a loaded pistol at her head, threatened her life, and inserted the leg from a footstool into her vagina for ten to fifteen minutes. Defendant then performed vaginal intercourse on the bound victim and forced her to perform fellatio. Over the course of the next five evenings, defendant used a syringe to inject liquor into the victim's vagina, inserted various vegetables into her vagina which he then forced into her mouth, inserted cola bottles and the footstool leg into her vagina, burned her vagina with a cigarette lighter, dragged her about the house by her hair, and forced her to engage in vaginal sex and fellatio. Defendant continued to bind the victim and threaten her while performing these acts, telling her that he would kill her if she told anyone what he was doing to her, that she was stuck with him for the rest of her life, and that he would fix her so no other man would want her. On the sixth evening defendant again bound the victim and threatened her with the pistol, then had vaginal and oral sex with her against her will. Defendant then took a plate of spaghetti from the kitchen, ejaculated onto it, and forced the victim to eat it. Defendant inserted a curling iron into the victim's vagina, telling her all the while that she was ugly and "a pile of shit."
After this period of sustained abuse, the victim took her children and went to live with her mother. She testified that she had stayed with defendant up to that point because she feared that defendant would carry out his threats to kill her, and she feared for the safety of her two children. She told no one of the abuse for approximately two years because she was ashamed and afraid of defendant.
She testified, "I felt like I was the lowest person on the face of the earth. I had no self-esteem, no confidence in myself."
In January 1985 the victim entered the First Step support program for victims of spousal abuse. Her counselor described her as being "very timid, very weak both emotionally and physically" when she entered the program. She was hospitalized for two weeks in September 1985 for depression and suicidal tendencies. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Schmitt, testified that she was severely depressed and suffered from poor appetite, insomnia, anxiety, and feelings of hopelessness and helplessness.
In August 1986 the victim was again hospitalized for suicidal tendencies, severe depression, and anorexia nervosa. She remained in the hospital for approximately four weeks. It was during this second hospitalization that she first told her doctor of the abuse defendant inflicted upon her in July 1984. Dr. Schmitt testified that he prescribed antidepressant medication for the victim during her hospitalizations and up to the time of trial.
In December 1986 the victim entered the Raider Institute and underwent an intensive six-week program for treatment of her anorexic condition. Twelve weeks of outpatient therapy followed this last hospitalization. Dr. de la Garza, medical director of the program, testified that the victim was severely malnourished when she entered the program. He testified that in his opinion she was trying to make herself unattractive sexually by starving herself because of the sexual abuse she had suffered in the past.
At the
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