Survivor Stories Series: When Protectors Become Predators — How One Father is Fighting to Close Legal Loopholes For Survivors to Get Justice with Chris McGhee

28/05/2025 45 min Episodio 17
Survivor Stories Series: When Protectors Become Predators — How One Father is Fighting to Close Legal Loopholes For Survivors to Get Justice with Chris McGhee

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Episode Synopsis

This month on Voice Lessons, I’m doing a special series where every week we’ll have a new episode sharing the voices and stories of survivors who have experienced sexual trauma. This week, I spoke with Chris McGee, a father of 3 daughters and survivor advocate, about his experience with the legal system after it came out that his daughter had been groomed and sexually assaulted by a local police officer. The crime resulted in a lenient plea deal where the officer unfortunately walked free. Refusing to accept this as justice, Chris began working to close legal loopholes that allow law enforcement officers to escape serious charges for sexual violence. Throughout this conversation, we discussed the importance of identifying grooming behavior, creating safe environments for children, and the challenges parents face in trusting their instincts. Although Chris doesn’t consider himself a writer, he shares a letter he wrote to himself after this experience about releasing the guilt and shame around the trauma his family endured. I think most will agree after hearing it that Chris truly is a writer, and his upcoming book, 'Finding a Way Back,' aims to provide a sense of community and support for other survivors and their families. Key Topics:Navigating the legal system after a police officer took advantage of his familyHaving the conversations nobody wants to have about keeping your family safeTrusting your intuition as a parent, especially with teenagersThe warning signs that somebody might be taking advantage of your kid(s)Why do we need to make it easier for survivors to come forwardTaking the responsibility from victims and putting it back onto predatorsWhy Chris decided to write his upcoming book ‘Finding a Way Back’How Chris has navigated the guilt and shame he felt after the incidentWhy AWA works for healing after traumaAdvice for other survivors of trauma on finding their voicesConnect with Chris online:Website: chrismcghee.comInstagram: @chris_mcghee_Amherst Writers and Artists Anthology: https://amherstwriters.org/bookstore/Find more from Jill: Email: [email protected] Website: https://www.thewritersrefuge.com/ Writing Coaching Programs: https://www.thewritersrefuge.com/coaching Sign up for my free 3x weekly writing session: write to [email protected] for ZOOM info Special thanks to LVDY for allowing us to use their song, Saltwater, in the intro and outro of the podcast!

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