Page 3 - Celeste Returned News Today

Through your life, celeste. >> can i give him a hug? >> thats all he wants. it takes time, celeste, but it will get better. >> i dont think a rape victim every heals. you have just been given a life sentence. it never goes away. >> despite everything thats happened, harmony does have renewed hope. >> for the first time i can just keep looking forward and not backwards that victory came along with being able to breathe. >> celeste and harmonys allegations of sexual assault happened 20 years apart...

For you? >> yes, my grand grandpa was a navajo code talker. my grandpa, he was an aviation jet mechanic. my dad was this the marine corps. the marines are the toughest branch and i wanted to be the best. >> celeste returned home to new mexico where she grew up on reservation with her twin thor and her parents. >> get muddy, get dirty, oh, well, we will watch the clothes. they would have so much fun. >> celeste was such a happy, happy little girl. always a doer, always a leader. >> in high school...

5,640 allegations of sexual assault. of those, only 4% went to trial. and in the end, there were only 156 convictions. why are conviction rates so low? >> poor investigations, the wrong people making decisions. one of the most common things we hear is oh, this is a he said-she said case. it immediately discounts the allegation, makes it sound like it is unprosecutable. there is definitely a culture of disbelief, where very little credit is given to the victim. >> i felt like i was going crazy be...

We better prevent sexual assault crimes. this is a leadership issue, and we will lead. now, we wait, to see if actions follow words. the path to reform has maddeningly slow. but several months after we completed filming, celeste came one step closer to justice. there has been a big break in her sexual harassment claim against her superior officer. other survivors have come forward against him with their own allegations of abuse. for celeste, its validation that shes not in this fight alone. and ...

Many months. so hes able to be pet like this. this is going to help you through your life, celeste. >> can i give him a hug? >> thats all he wants. it takes time, celeste, but it will get better. >> i dont think a rape victim every heals. you have just been given a life sentence. it never goes away. >> despite everything thats happened, harmony does have renewed hope. >> for the first time i can just keep looking forward and not backwards that victory came along with being able to breathe. >> ce...

Episode. >> upon arrival, celeste tells me she was kept in solitary confinement for three days. >> thats when i knew it was intentional. >> what was intentional? >> the retaliation. after she reported they were intentionally trying to silence her. >> if you try to speak up in this military, you are going to be reprimanded one way or another. >> would you say that the military intentionally tries to discredit victims? >> i dont know if i would say intentionally, but i would say habitually. it is ...

One month into lockup with no end in sight, celeste asked a friend to post her story to social media. since vanessa guillens murder this has become an effective strategy to speak out. >> #, i am vanessa guillen took off like wildfire. >> vanessa opened the door that we have been banging at for years. >> it was -- for the first time, i think, for so many survivors the opportunity to raise their hand and say yeah, this is me too. >> once celestes story gained attention, it wasnt long after the mar...

Intimidated about saying anything about the things that he was telling you and showing you? >> if i didnt give him that attention back, he would have made my life hell. >> celeste feared that the superior officer might cross the line. from harassment to something worse. but she didnt anticipate what would happen with a fellow marine who she considered a friend. one weekend in 2020, celeste and a friend took a sight seeing trip off base. >> he had this girl he wanted to see. they met on tinneder....

The million terry within a year of reporting. >> they are discharged. >> discharged. 25% of those were forced out with less than a if ehonorable discharge. if you dont get an honorable discharge you lose benefits, gi bill, ability to get a va loan, you lose your ability to get medical care for injuries you received while on active duty. >> it could affect their the rest of their lives. >> the rest of their lives. >> at this point there is not much more she can do. the military has dropped the in...

But i was so motivated. when i first got my eagle globe and anchor, i cried. i wanted to become a drill instructor. i wanted to make a career out of the marines. >> in 2019, celeste arrived in booford, south carolina, ranked as private. how often are you talking to her while shes there in. >> she would call me about five times out of the week, at least. >> thats how i am with my mom, too but she sounded happy? >> sounded happy, yes. >> i wonder what it was like as a woman to be living day to day...