I have gotten many calls and e-mails from all over the country from people wanting to learn what I know about the horrible assault on local news anchor Anne Pressly. I don't know much more than what everybody else knows. Pressly was found unconscious in her bed by her Mother early Monday morning. She had been savagely beaten about her head and shoulders by an assailant or assailants as yet unknown to the police. Indeed, we learned from her Father yesterday that she attempted to defend herself against her attacker. In return she wound up with virtually all of the bones in her face broken as well as her left hand. Her doctors were cautiously optimistic about her prognosis as late as yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, Anne Pressly died last night at the tender age of 26.
This story has resonated in this town for any of a number of reasons. Violent crime is virtually unknown in the neighborhood where she rented a house. Bank fraud and wire fraud, maybe. But the Country Club area of the Heights is practically a little Switzerland of tranquility and safety. She was a beautiful young woman with a prominent position at a local television station. I have been told by friends in the media that know her that Anne was a genuinely nice person which is not always the case in that line of work. This kind of crime is not supposed to happen to the Anne Presslys of this world. Especially not in that neighborhood.
I do not know if her attack was a random event during a property crime gone bad. It seems that the type of beating she received was atypical of that type of crime. Her beautiful face bore the brunt of her attacker's rage. People get robbed all of the time without getting disfigured in the process. This attack seems awfully personal to me. This is the gut feeling of most women in my life who have expressed an opinion to me concerning the matter.
Hard to say which scenario is scarier: Was she beaten during a robbery gone horribly bad? Or did a stalker or an ex-lover do this dreadful thing to her? We don't know what we don't know. The first scenario, although plausible, is probably not very likely. If you want to go by the stats, the second scenario looks more probable.
Because women are assaulted all of the time.
Two days after the news of Anne Pressly's assault a black woman in a less afluent neighborhood of Little rock was shot and killed by her ex while she was taking a shower in the alleged privacy and safety of her home. Her children were there at the time. I do not know this lady either. But like Pressly I am sure this woman "loved and was loved" in equal measure by her people as well. Her untimely demise is every bit as tragic as the assault of Anne Pressly.
It's just that nobody knew her.
If any good can possibly come from the deaath of Anne Pressly, and there won't be much, it will be the realization that violence against women is at epidemic proportions and that it cuts across all social lines of demarcation. The women's shelters are full of Anne Pressleys. I could name you at least 3 women over in Pleasant Valley and/or Chenal who have been battered. The woods are full of crazy narcissistic men who hit women when they don't get their way. Safety is an illusion whether you live in Walton Heights or in Mabelvale.
I'm certain that the LRPD is doing everything it can to bring Pressly's attacker to justice. By all appearances, they are working slowly and methodically to put this puzzle together as well they should. Hopefully soon they will have probable cause to charge somebody. And hopefully once he is convicted he will be sent away for a long period of time. And yes, there has been much hotheaded talk on the radio and on the Internet that hangin' is too good for whoever did such a cowardly thing.
While I may tend to agree, such talk, while pleasing in a certain visceral sense, is useless. It is far better for everyone to keep their eye on the ball.
Pray for her family. Pray for the safety of your own while you are at it. Give blood. Donate money to the fund that has been set up to reward anybody that has information that leads to a conviction.
And pray for the lady who was shot the other night. She didn't deserve it either. And remember the women's shelters in this state.
They are full of Anne Pressleys. Because safety is an illusion.
4 comments:
My concern is for the first responders. Im an afterhours on call nurse that attends deaths during the night. One of the procedures that we follow is upon the death in the home, the local police are called. The officer who responded to this case was unusually distracted. I could tell that it wasnt due to this situation. After the case was completed, he told me that he was one of the first on the scene and just couldnt shake off what he observed. He said that he keeps telling himself that this feeling is due to "knowing by watching her on TV", but it seemed to him unreal due to the extent of her injuries. I told him to seek whatever counciling that is available for the police. Hope that has not been a part of any budget cuts.
I enjoy your blog. Also, want to thank you for defending my daughter, Kat, on the Eat Arkansas blog at the Arkansas Times. Its so hard to sit back and not say anything when people get rude on there.
Kitty
Thanks for reminding us that violence against women is equal opportunity for females - no discrimination there.
I am heartbroken for the families of both women.
Add me to the list who think this beating/murder began as more than a random robbery. The rage terrifies --
lucy
I wondered about domestic violence myself considering she was home, nothing has been said about a break in, and she was found in her bed.
Yes Kitty, The Eat Arkansas blog is like fight club. Who knew pretentious foodies could be so nasty?
Violence against women is far more prevalent than we realize; unfortunately, high-profile cases seem to be the most effective means of raising awareness. Pressly's death is incredibly tragic, but no more so than those of the thousands of other women who are killed by misogynist sickos every year.
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