NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Three years ago Danielle Pyle was raped in her own home by a man she did not know.
As she explained to the Tennessee House of Representative in March, Pyle was out for a friend’s birthday when a fellow partygoer offered to walk her home.
“Being the Southern woman I am, I accepted his chivalry,” Pyle said. “He walked me two doors down, came in my house, and before I knew it, he was sexually assaulting me in my own room, in my own bed, that I have to sleep in to this day.”
Pyle filed a police report and had a rape kit done at the Sexual Assault Center of Nashville.
But 13 months later when Metro Nashville Police called her back, she learned the statue of limitations to file a civil lawsuit against her attacker had already expired.
“There is no justice in my case,” Pyle told legislators, “and I have made peace with that. I am asking you today to extend the statue of civil limitations on which you can sue someone for sexual violent crime.”
In early April, which is Sexual Assault Awareness month, Gov. Bill Lee signed “Danielle’s Law,” extending the statute of limitations for rape victims to sue their attacker, from one year to three to five years, depending on whether they filed a police report.
“That process of the criminal investigation is super taxing, mentally, physically, and emotionally, and being able to have some time to heal after that and pursue something else, if they choose, makes a huge difference,” Pyle said.
WSMV4 talked to Pyle and SAC therapist Alicia Bunch after Thursday’s ruling by the New York State Court of Appeals which threw out Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, disappointing women who celebrated the historic gains made during the #MeToo era.
The court found the trial judge unfairly allowed testimony against Weinstein based on allegations that weren’t part of the case.
”I am really mad,” said Pyle. “A complete lack of respect for victims of sexual assault and really any crime for that matter.”
Pyle, who spent hours in counseling at SAC after her assault, said she feels for the women in the Weinstein case who may fear having to relive their trauma or people no longer believing them.
“Having to open up the wound of your story is devastating,” Pyle said.
“It’s incredibly infuriating and it’s also discouraging, that such an important case was overturned,” said SAC Clinical Director Alicia Bunch. “Because we know the impact that has on survivors and on people coming forward in the criminal legal system because of how these cases are treated.”
Pyle said therapists and volunteers at the Sexual Assault Center have “never left her side” since the day she had a rape kit done at its Safe Clinic, and that hearing their repeated words, “I believe you; I support you.” have made all the difference as she worked to get Danielle’s Law signed into law.
“Survivors need more time than a year to heal. It’s been nearly three years since my rape, and I’ve told my story over and over again. It’s take me three years to do that,” Pyle said. “I represented injustice for a few years, and now I get to represent change.”
If you or someone you love needs help after sexual assault, call the 24-hour helpline at 1-866-811-7473 or contact the Sexual Assault Center.
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