In Tampa Bay, 1984, a seventeen-year-old girl was abducted by serial killer and rapist Bobby Joe Long, who raped her. After her clever escape, she would play a crucial role in Long’s eventual capture. Her name is Lisa McVey, and her brave actions inspired the movie Believe Me: The Abduction of Lisa McVey.
Even before her abduction, McVey was an abuse victim. She had been forced by her drug- and alcohol-addicted mother to take care of her grandmother at the age of fourteen. Before moving in with her grandmother, she had been in and out of foster care. When living with her grandmother, she faced constant sexual and physical abuse.
McVey stated, “I was being sexually abused at home. My grandmother's boyfriend used to put a gun to my head every time he molested me for three years. It was nothing new to me. One bad situation got me to another bad situation is what saved my life. Because the night before [the abduction] I'm doing my suicide note and the next night I'm fighting for my life.”
When biking home from work on November 3, 1984, McVey was blindfolded, held at gunpoint, raped, and tortued for twenty-six hours. Her rapist had been responsible for at least ten murders and fifty rapes in the past.
Her intelligence and wit were her most vital tools. She offered to be Long’s secret girlfriend and made him feel sympathetic toward her by claiming that her father was ill and had no one else to take care of him. Eventually, she successfully persuaded him to release her, and she kept her blindfold on for five minutes while he escaped.
When she arrived back home, she was abused and scolded for disappearing and supposedly lying about being abducted. Nevertheless, she was able to contact the police and help them find and arrest Long. The police were greatly aided by the details that McVey recalled and the fingerprints that she had intentionally left in Long’s bathroom. After pleading guilty to his crimes, Long was sentenced to death in 2019, during which McVey and one other victim was present.
McVey eventually became a police officer and a middle school resource officer committed to helping victims and teaching students what to do in dangerous situations. Her story has inspired countless children, victims, and media producers due to her unique intelligence and bravery.
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Jurisview Journal is a student-led blog that publishes biweekly articles about interesting criminal cases. Our aim is to shed light on cases that require justice or further exploration and provide input on controversial legal events. We also publish infographics to help victims or those who wish to educate themselves on legal issues.
In this series, Survivor Stories, we explore and share the stories of survivors of violence and crime. Through this, we advocate for justice and more attention to victims such as the survivors we feature.
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