As rapists' parole nears, victim learns self-defense

At least one rapist is expected to return to the area where the crimes occurred.
HAMILTON, Ohio (AP) -- A woman who was repeatedly raped 23 years ago has learned self-defense and how to shoot a gun in case two of her attackers return to her town when they're paroled Monday.
"If it's me or them, it's not going to be me anymore," said Cathy Lindsey. "I would not hesitate for a minute to protect my life."
At the time of the attack, Lindsey was a 24-year-old divorced mother of three, working part time and attending college.
"I thought I was doing well," she said. "Then my life was shattered."
Three men broke into her Middletown home, tied her up and held a gun to her head and raped her repeatedly. They made her beg for her life and for the safety of her children, who were in another room, and forced her to say over and over that she would not tell police.
When they finally left, Lindsey drove to a hospital and ignored the men's threats to kill her. She identified two attackers, and later picked the third from a police lineup. They had been so bold -- or so inept -- that they took turns wearing a single pillowcase over their heads, Lindsey said.
Evidence
All three men denied any involvement, but police found their fingerprints in Lindsey's apartment and found the gun, pillowcase and clothesline used to bind her hands in the home of Richard Reed Jr., who lived across the street.
Reed, 53, and Robert Hogsten, 49, are being released Monday, after serving all but five years of their sentences on rape convictions. In exchange for their guilty pleas, prosecutors dropped charges of aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery.
Hogsten said last week he did not plan to return "so I don't have to be around the victim, so the victim does feel better."
Reed's family expects him to return to the area. He has a son in nearby Monroe.
"He just wants to spend time with his family and see his grandchildren," Richard Reed III recently told The Middletown Journal.
Lindsey dreads the possibility that either man could live near her home in Middletown. Both have been declared sexual predators, Reed during a February hearing and Hogsten last week during a hearing in Butler County Common Pleas Court, which Lindsey attended.
"They're arrogant and violent, and they can think of only one thing -- revenge," Lindsey said. "I feel like a walking target. I walk down the street like I've got a bull's eye on me."
The third man convicted in the attack is Hogsten's brother, Edward, 50. He did not take a plea bargain, was convicted of rape, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery and was sentenced to 28 to 68 years in prison. He will be eligible for parole in 2011.
Nightmares
Lindsey, a licensed practical nurse, said she has nightmares about being attacked by the men again. She does not leave her house alone and depends on her husband to drive her to and from work.
Dana Gilbert, assistant director of the Rape Crisis & amp; Abuse Center in Cincinnati, said Lindsey's fears are understandable, even after so many years. Counselors generally urge victims to seek protective orders and support groups, but learning self-defense techniques also can be helpful, she said.
"If they would feel more comfortable knowing how to defend themselves, that is certainly something that would make them feel empowered," Gilbert said. "I would hate to see a confrontation, but if someone feels safer and more empowered, that's good."
Lindsey and her husband, Michael, filed for protective orders to be served on Reed and Hogsten before their release, and have applied for permits to carry concealed weapons. Michael, a prison guard and Army veteran, has helped teach his wife to shoot.
Her preference is a snub-nosed revolver, but she also can handle his .45-caliber automatic, her husband said.
"She's not looking forward to that time, but she's prepared," he said. "I think she can pull the trigger, absolutely. Hopefully, she'll never have to find out."
Middletown City Manager Bill Becker, a former police officers who was one of the detectives investigating the case 23 years ago, said he never was a fan of concealed carry laws.
"But it's certainly Cathy's right, if she feels the need, and in this particular case, I wouldn't blame her," he said.
Although Lindsey says she hates being so afraid and dreads the public hearings that dredge up memories of her rape, her husband believes that talking about it so openly is also cathartic. "Every time, she gets a little stronger," he said.