After 22 Years, Justice and Hope

In 1984, 17-year-old Liz Seccuro was brutally raped while unconscious by a fellow student at the University of Virginia. Though she brought her story to the hospital, campus police and university deans, her story was ignored by those who could help her, and eventually the case went cold.

Twenty-one years later, Liz, now married with a two-year-old daughter, received a letter in the mail from her rapist, William Beebe. In it, he apologized for raping her, asking for forgiveness as part of his Alcoholics Anonymous program. With a confession in hand and with the help of committed detectives and prosecutors, Liz brought charges against her rapist. But the path to justice was far from easy. Two years of media scrutiny, renewed blame for the crime that was committed against her and obfuscation on the part of Beebe’s defense team led to the revelation that there had been two other rapists, numerous witnesses and a mass cover-up between fraternity brothers that evening in Virginia. In the end, Beebe was sentenced to two years in prison (a “computer error” led to him serving less than 6 months of that sentence), and the two other rapists were never brought to justice.

Liz chronicles the series of events in her book, “Crash Into Me: A Survivor’s Search for Justice” (Bloomsbury USA), released earlier this year. In clear, unflinching words, she walks the reader through the events leading up to the rape, the rape itself and the days following it, and of the long path to justice that took place two decades later. It reveals volumes not only about Liz’s own courage and mettle, but also of a culture that all too often fails rape victims at every level of justice.

Now an events planner and activist living in Virginia, Liz spoke with us about the case, the book and her continued fight for justice.

Your rapist, William Beebe, served a little over 5 months in jail. Do you feel like it—the prosecution, the trial, the media coverage—was worth it? Why?

I do. Justice doesn’t have a number, although I know the sentence seems light to most people. It’s always worth it for a rape victim to come forward and get justice. My case is no different than if a 10-year-old DNA hit had come up and the Commonwealth had prosecuted him. Take the sensationalism out of the crime and it’s just.

How has your pursuit of justice against your rapist affected your life? Your family? Your business?


It has made me a better mother, a more fierce activist, a more compassionate and empathetic human being. I don’t judge anything at face value, since I was so harshly judged by some. If a prospective client Googles me and sees the case, then demurs (I don’t know if this has happened), then he or she was not worth doing business with in the first place. Clearly, I took a sabbatical from my ‘real’ job to write the book and give birth to my second child, but it’s all about balance. For any woman! My husband and I struggled in our marriage, certainly, under the stress and the glare, but we came out stronger. Secondary survivors struggle so very much and I can’t point out how little the public thinks of how family and friends suffer as well.

There’s often a debate in feminist circles about whether rape victims have a responsibility to come forward and report their rapes. Having been through a rape trial in an extremely public way, what’s your take on this debate?

I think every rape victim must do what feels right for him or her. I understand the lack of reporting [of rapes by victims] – just look at the way rape victims are treated in the courtroom and the media – especially of late with the East Texas case, the Libyan case, and Lara Logan in Egypt. I will say this, however – I would implore each rape victim to go and have a rape kit done at the hospital, regardless of pressing charges. Why? Because a) you may decide in a week or month that you DO wish to press charges and b) that data collection may be the key in solving the rape of another person and your willingness to submit to the kit will be all the difference in solving another person’s nightmare. Rapists rarely offend just once.

What are some of the most common misconceptions about how the justice system processes rape victims?

Most people think it’s terrifying and disabling for a victim to testify, but the reverse is true, both anecdotally and with real studies. Those who do face their rapist in a courtroom may be traumatized initially, but feel very much empowered for having done so. It’s also a myth that we are treated fairly in the courtroom. We are not. From children to the elderly, defense attorneys will always put the victim on trial, despite rape shield laws. What we wear, what we’ve consumed, our sexual history, why we were physically there in the first place – it’s mystifying. It’s also true that women jurors are far more likely to acquit a rapist, even when they know, for sure, that the rapist is guilty. Ask any defense attorney who they want in a jury box and they’ll say, ‘12 women.’ Who does the prosecution want? Fathers.

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