What every witness to Brett Kavanaugh’s alleged assaults has said
Sep 27, 2018, 12:02 PM | Updated: 12:04 pm
The three women who have come forward to publicly accuse Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. From left to right: Deborah Ramirez, Julie Swetnick, and Christine Ford.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court erupted into chaos when Dr. Christine Blasey Ford alleged that, during a party in 1982 when they were in high school, Kavanaugh pinned her down and attempted to rape her.
Since then, three other women have come forward alleging that they, like Dr. Ford, were sexually abused or harassed by Brett Kavanaugh during his younger years.
Kavanaugh himself, however, has repeatedly denied every accusation against him, and he has not been proven guilty in any court of law. And many of his friends and classmates have come out supporting him, either speaking out in support of his character or outright denying his role in the attack.
Nobody knows for sure what really happened that night in 1982, but the best way to find out is to listen to the witnesses. We’ve put together statements from every witness who has spoken out on the accusations against Brett Kavanaugh so that you can judge for yourself.
Christine Blasey Ford
Christine Blasey Ford testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee. September 27, 2018. (CNN)
In her opening statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Dr. Ford described the alleged assault:
“When I got to the small gathering, people were drinking beer in a small living room on the first floor of the house. I drank one beer that evening. Brett and Mark [Judge] were visibly drunk.
“Early in the evening, I went up a narrow set of stairs leading from the living room to a second floor to use the bathroom. When I got to the top of the stairs, I was pushed from behind into a bedroom. I couldn’t see who pushed me. Brett and Mark came into the bedroom and locked the door behind them. There was music already playing in the bedroom. It was turned up louder by either Brett or Mark once we were in the room.
“I was pushed onto the bed and Brett got on top of me. He began running his hands over my body and grinding his hips into me. I yelled, hoping someone downstairs might hear me, and tried to get away from him, but his weight was heavy. Brett groped me and tried to take off my clothes. He had a hard time because he was so drunk, and because I was wearing a one-piece bathing suit under my clothes. I believed he was going to rape me.
“I tried to yell for help. When I did, Brett put his hand over my mouth to stop me from screaming. This was what terrified me the most, and has had the most lasting impact on my life. It was hard for me to breathe, and I thought that Brett was accidentally going to kill me. Both Brett and Mark were drunkenly laughing during the attack. They both seemed to be having a good time. Mark was urging Brett on, although at times he told Brett to stop. A couple of times I made eye contact with Mark and thought he might try to help me, but he did not.”
Dr. Ford has repeated her statement in a polygraph test with a former FBI agent. The agent claims that the test showed that she was being truthful.
Mark Judge
Mark Judge outside a friend’s home in the seaside holiday village of Bethany Beach, Del. (Gabriel Pogrund / The Washington Post)
Mark Judge, Kavanaugh’s alleged “drinking buddy,” has been accused of participating in the alleged sexual assault. He has repeatedly denied that the incident ever occurred.
When contacted by the Weekly Standard, he stated:
“It’s just absolutely nuts. I never saw Brett act that way.”
Judge later repeated his denial to the New York Times:
“I never saw anything like what was described . . . Something like that would stick out, which is why I don’t think it would happen.”
Patrick J. Smyth
Patrick J. Smyth’s, a man Christine Ford claims was present at the party during which she was allegedly assaulted. (LinkedIn)
Dr. Ford named Patrick J. Smyth as one of the boys present during the party in 1982. In a statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Smyth denied having any knowledge of the alleged attack:
“I have no knowledge of the party in question; nor do I have any knowledge of the allegations of improper conduct she has leveled against Brett Kavanaugh.
“Personally speaking, I have known Brett Kavanaugh since high school and I know him to be a person of great integrity, a great friend, and I have never witnessed any improper conduct by Brett Kavanaugh towards women.”
Leland Ingham Keyser
Leland Keyser, Dr. Ford’s friend. Dr. Ford says that Keyser was at the party during which Kavanaugh allegedly assaulted her. (Leland Keyser/Facebook)
Leland Ingham Keyser, who has been described as a “lifelong friend” of Dr. Ford, was also named as one of the people present during the 1982 party.
In a statement made through her lawyer, Ms. Keyser denied any recollection of the event:
“Ms. Keyser does not know Mr. Kavanaugh and she has no recollection of ever being at a party or gathering where he was present, with, or without, Dr. Ford.”
Dr. Ford has issued a response through her lawyer clarifying that, though Keyser was at the party, she was not made aware of the assault:
“It’s not surprising that Ms. Keyser has no recollection of the evening as they did not discuss it. It’s also unremarkable that Ms. Keyser does not remember attending a specific gathering 30 years ago at which nothing of consequence happened to her.”
Elizabeth Rasor
Mark Judge’s ex-girlfriend, Elizabeth Rasor, recently spoke to the New Yorker challenging the claim that the accusation against him was out of character for either he or Judge Kavanaugh.
The New Yorker reported:
“Rasor recalled that Judge had told her ashamedly of an incident that involved him and other boys taking turns having sex with a drunk woman. Rasor said that Judge seemed to regard it as fully consensual. She said that Judge did not name others involved in the incident, and she has no knowledge that Kavanaugh participated.”
Rasor has recently declared that she is willing to speak to the FBI and the Senate Judiciary Committee about what she knows.
Deborah Ramirez
Deborah Ramirez, a Yale classmate of Kavanaugh’s, was the second woman to publically accuse the supreme court nominee of sexual misconduct. (Benjamin Rasmussen for The New Yorker)
Brett Kavanaugh’s second accuser told the New Yorker that she was sexually harassed by Kavanaugh after passing out during a party:
“I remember a penis being in front of my face. … Somebody yelled down the hall, ‘Brett Kavanaugh just put his penis in Debbie’s face.’ It was his full name. I don’t think it was just ‘Brett.’ And I remember hearing and being mortified that this was out there.”
Ramirez claims that, during the incident, another party-goer told her to “kiss it”. She says that, to Kavanugh, the incident was “kind of a joke.” However, she also says that it left her feeling “embarrassed and ashamed and humiliated.”
Julia Swetnick
Julie Swetnick, Kavanaugh’s third accuser, claims that she was “gang raped” by Kavanaugh and his friends. (Michael Avenatti/Twitter)
Kavanaugh’s third accuser released a statement through her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, claiming that she had been “gang raped” by Kavanaugh in 1982:
“I also witnessed efforts by Mark Judge, Brett Kavanaugh and others to cause girls to become inebriated and disoriented so they could then be ‘gang raped’ in a side room or bedroom by a ‘train’ of numerous boys.
“I have a firm recollection of seeing boys lined up outside rooms and many of these parties waiting for their ‘turn’ with a girl inside the room. These boys included Mark Judge and Brett Kavanaugh. …
“In approximately 1982, I became the victim of one of these ‘gang’ or ‘train’ rapes where Mark Judge and Brett Kavanaugh were present. … I believe I was drugged using Quaaludes or something similar placed in what I was drinking.”
Anonymous fourth accuser
An anonymous man sent a complaint to Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colorado, claiming that he had seen Brett Kavanaugh physically assault a woman in the Washington, D.C. area in 1998:
“When they left the bar (under the influence of alcohol) they were all shocked when Brett Kavanaugh, shoved her friend up against the wall very aggressively and sexually. … There were at least four witnesses including my daughter.”
The witness has yet to provide any names, saying that the alleged victim was traumatized and, for the time being, wants to remain anonymous.
Brett Kavanaugh
Brett Kavanaugh waits to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee for the third day of his confirmation hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Sept. 6, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Brett Kavanaugh himself has “categorically and unequivocally” denied every accusation against him. In his opening statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Judge Kavanaugh stated:
“I never did anything remotely resembling what Dr. Ford describes. The allegation of misconduct is completely inconsistent with the rest of my life. The record of my life, from my days in grade school through the present day, shows that I have always promoted the equality and dignity of women.”
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