Civil trial of Gilbert Rozon: the victims’ reactions dissected by an expert

In the civil trial between nine women and former comedy mogul Gilbert Rozon, an expert dissected on Monday the various testimonies of sexual assault heard in recent weeks in order to explain the reactions of the alleged victims.

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“No woman is prepared to be attacked. This is an unexpected event, and there are several possible reactions that must be considered [comme] normal in the face of an abnormal event,” emphasized from the outset Karine Baril, professor in the Department of Psychoeducation and Psychology at the University of Quebec in Outaouais.

Here are some of these reactions recounted during the testimonies analyzed by the specialist in sexual violence.

Confusion

The vast majority of women suing Gilbert Rozon reported the confusion experienced at the time of the attack of which they were allegedly victims, a phenomenon well documented according to Karine Baril.

Annick Charette notably emphasized that at the time of the attack, “[elle] I didn’t understand why it was happening like that.

Some of them even reported tonic immobility, “a catatonic state of paralysis in which they will feel anesthetized,” according to M.^me Gun.

“I felt like a survivor of a bombing. Everything was frozen, I couldn’t hear anything,” illustrated Danie Frenette.

Dissociation

This alteration of consciousness is an adaptation mechanism allowing “making the intolerable tolerable” which is triggered especially when the victim was unable to flee or fight, explained Karine Baril.

This has the effect of altering the perception of the environment and time. Anne-Marie Charrette, for example, mentioned having the impression of seeing her backpack fall in slow motion or having to walk down a corridor that seemed very long to her.

Some people also experience dissociative amnesia which leads to memory lapses of varying sizes. This is why Annick Charette remembered the cage of birds which was near the bed, but not all the details of her attack, according to M.^me Gun.

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Sexual assault is one of the traumatic events most associated with the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), also known by its English abbreviation PTSD, the expert emphasized in court.

This can take several forms, including avoidance. But negative mood alterations were noted in almost all of the women’s testimonies, which included shame, guilt, anger or disgust.

PTSD can lead to hypervigilance, but also to thoughtless and destructive behavior, such as substance abuse or even continuing to associate with one’s attacker, as was the case for the majority of the applicants.