Slander Confetti

The Defendant didn’t take the plea offer from the District Attorney today. She knew that no other plea opportunity would be better terms for her than the one she declined today. When the trial date is posted publicly, I’ll update the blog. The trial is what many of you have wondered about–all of the hearings up until today have been about her violations. Today was the Change of Plea docket and we have her answer: She prefers to max out her due process, as is any defendant’s right, and wants to head to trial. So, here we go. The trial (sometime in August) will be when we get to hear out loud all of the things she’s been practicing in small rooms with vulnerable minds, as well as the strategic mind of her attorney. It is also the place I’ll take the stand and testify to everything I’ve experienced with her. And we’ll see how justice shakes out of this system in this situation.

Here’s my statement given to the judge before court today (I think it was read aloud. I was busy having a life I love today, so not at the hearing):

Thank you, Judge, for the opportunity to offer this written statement, in lieu of my attendance today.

In the event that the Defendant takes advantage of the DA-offered change of plea opportunity, I support it only because I prefer this process end as soon as possible. This legal process, though necessary (and the efforts/resources of police and courts, deeply appreciated), has allowed the Defendant to remain connected to me for 139 days (which is more than twice the time we dated) past the day she simply could have walked away and not chased rejection so intensely and abusively.

As mentioned before: this pattern of abuse that meets the legal definition of Harassment and Stalking is an established pattern of hers. (I have written communication from a –still growing– pool of women who have collectively experienced everything the Defendant has done/attempted to do to me/continues to do, and worse.) I worry this opportunity to avoid the full extent of legal consequences for her behavior by pleading to fewer counts will be of reinforcing, not deterring impact.

Nonetheless, my hope is that sentencing will offer the chance of meaningful consequences that could restrain and/or offer (yet another) chance for behavioral change through substance abuse and mental health therapeutic intervention.

This hope is heavily tempered by her pattern of exploiting any opportunity to further her evasion of personal accountability through elaborate and inconsistent false narratives, including claims of abuse by me that never happened, but are as actually described in other women’ s descriptions of her behavior toward them in the past. As a person and mental health professional who witnesses and participates in the transformative power of therapy and recovery from substance abuse on a daily basis, this earned cynicism toward her is an important mark left by the Defendant’s own behavior toward me, and members of our community.

I continue to have durable faith in these processes, just not for the Defendant. I’ll let the Court apply that hope toward her instead.

In appreciation,

Dr. Bevyn Rowland

Please only ‘Like’ after caution and with intention. The person we’re dealing with here (per the reports of so many women, that I’ve stopped posting tallies of) has a long history of vindictive retaliation at any perceived slight (which includes perceived alliance with me).

For this reason, my process all along has been to NOT post any comment you all make on my posts. However, a ‘Like’ isn’t something I can undo for you. So, if you choose to do so, may it be for your own wise purposes. I continue to recommend to folx: Let’s see how the current restraining orderS and violations will be handled at this level of court before drawing unnecessary attention/fire from the defendant before it can be helpful to you.

As always, I am deeply moved by the response to this blog that started for one reason and continues for that and now others. With care, appreciation, and a little warning label now…-B

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