For North Andover Alum, Sex Assault Discussion Came Too Late

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — For years a neighbor and classmate had sexually abused and assaulted her. At first Kelly Marie Flanagan, who now goes by the name Kat Marie, didn't tell anyone. But by 2004 her grades had slipped and the panic attacks that forced her to leave class almost daily started. She told her guidance counselor what happened, but nothing came of the meeting.

Later on the same day she reported the assaults to her guidance counselor, Marie attempted to kill herself while still at school.

"I was in a really low place. Before things came crashing down I had been a great student and was involved in band," Marie said. "Unfortunately the weight of everything I had been carrying from my sexual assault had been too much for me to carry and I just kind of lost it."

For Marie, who graduated in 2006, Thursday night's school committee meeting, was bittersweet. She was encouraged when school officials said they were reviewing policies on how they handle sex assaults. But she's disheartened that the discussion, in her view, has been framed to make the arrest of 18-year-old Eliezer Tuttle seem like a one-time event and not a pattern that stretches back more than a decade.

"The school seems to be trying to play the recent events off as a one time thing or like they have handled assaults and accusations okay before, and that's not the case, at least in my experience," she said. "I can't help but wonder how many other kids were put in the position I was put in, or how many kids' safety was put at risk through the years because of the school's continued negligence dealing with sexual assault allegations, reports, disclosures and 'safety plans'."

Tuttle is being held without bail in New Hampshire on charges he twice raped a girl on Feb. 17. Since his arrest, three students at the school have said they accused Tuttle of sexual assault before his arrest. His victims were asked to sign safety action plans and faced disciplinary action if they had contact with him. The school is currently reviewing those policies and, at Thursday night's meeting, Superintendent Glenn Gilligan said all current safety plans had been rescinded pending the outcome of that review.

Indeed, Marie's feelings that the discussion has been put off for too long were echoed by a current student at the school at Thursday night's school committee meeting. If Tuttle "was never arrested, this would have never been brought to light," Julie Tschirhart, a senior, told the school committee during the public comment portion of the meeting.

Feeling Ignored

Marie's guidance counselor never reported the assault, as required under Massachusetts mandated reporter rules. Marie finally reported the assault to North Andover Police in 2015 when her assailant started stalking her. Marie was told when police interviewed the guidance counselor, she did not recall the meeting where Marie had told her she had been sexually assaulted. Friends Marie had told about the assault were able to offer vivid details when they were interviewed by police 11 years later.

After her attack, Marie fell into a deep depression and started suffering from panic attacks. She would frequently leave class and spend up to three hours a day in the guidance office. She says her parents were never notified. Adding to her anxiety is that her attacker still continued to attend school and show up to events Marie participated in, including band performances.

And the trauma has continued long after she left the school.

"Kids depend on people at the school to stand up for them and to go above and beyond when issues become present because they often haven't learned how to stand up for themselves yet," she said. "As an adult, it was hard for me to stand up for myself when I was sexually harassed at work because I didn't think people would listen or believe me.

"I remember telling people as a teen and not being taken seriously, and it was very hard for me to learn to set boundaries as an adult."

Correction: An earlier version of this article included inaccuracies about when and where Marie's assault occurred.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).