Last November, we reported that 90 Day Fiance star Ashley Martson had been kidnapped and brutally attacked when she was 19.
Now, Ashley is speaking up on Instagram and inviting her fans and followers to hear the grim story of her survival story.
This is a huge step for her, and she even released a statement about how she’s no longer afraid to address her trauma.
First of all, Ashley explains why she decided to get ahead and leak her story through blogger John Yates late last year.
"I wasn’t sure how the other tabloids would portray me,” Ashley explained at the time.
She added: “I knew he would post it with the with dignity and respect with the understanding that this is a very sensitive subject."
And, she revealed, she had been warned that an old "friend" already planned to leak the story of the brutal 2005 assault.
"People are disgusting," she correctly observed. "Sending this story to tabloids shows how s–tty people really are."
In 2005, Ashley was near her car outside of work when a man, Sean Patrick Gallagher, attacked her with a box cutter and tied her up.
He took her elsewhere in her own car. In a small athletic field, he stopped the car, terrorized her, and sexually assaulted her.
He could have — and may have been planning to — end her life.
Only 19 at the time, Ashley mustered the incredible courage to fight back against he armed monster.
She struck him with a bag and used her own teeth to chew through the zip-ties that had bound her hands so tightly that they were discolored.
Ashley made a run for it, on foot, sliding down an embankment and wading across a creek to get away.
Gallagher was eventually identified with DNA evidence. He was already in prison at the time.
At his trial, Ashley did not hold back when it came to scolding him for fighting the charges, forcing her to relive her horrific trauma.
In 2009, after Ashley’s testimony, it took only 90 minutes for the jury to convict.
He was found guilty of kidnapping, rape, involuntary intercourse, robbery, and terroristic threats.
Last November, it was John Yates who shared the story — at Ashley’s request — to get it out in the open, the right way.
Now, Ashley is addressing the topic herself on Instagram.
"I was kidnapped and almost killed," Ashley acknowledges.
"But," she continues. "I’m no longer afraid to speak out."
She then directs people to read about it.
There isn’t exactly new information, since it’s been public knowledge, but her statement is brand new.
Ashley has known a lot of awful experiences in her life.
Kidnapped at 19. And she continues to battle Lupus, a devastating and chronic autoimmune disease that threatens her life.
Leaked text messages appear to accuse her ex-husband, Jay Smith, of sexually assaulting her while she was recovering from a medical treatment.
There is no limit on the horror that one can experience in a lifetime, but we hope that Ashley never relives any of these nightmares again.
Ashley is a profoundly strong woman.
