Woman Attacked in Backyard - very close to home

[Star]

Okay, this is extremely close to home because this happened on my street!!! I don't know which house this was, I still haven't talked to my neibours to see if anyone knows anything. She did what I do every night. I don't smoke in the house so I go out in my backyard and have a smoke, day and night. It's pretty sad when you can't even feel safe in your own backyard anymore. scary!!

His face was an impenetrable void. It was expressionless, as though it was hewn from a block of stone. It did not reflect even the the faintest glimmer of emotion.

“It was so cold. It was like he was there, but wasn’t,â€Â� Debbie Hearn, 44, says. The hairs on her forearms stand on end and she self-consciously rubs them before speaking again.

“As if he was saying, ‘I have been programmed to do this.’ â€Â�

But her attacker said nothing when he dragged her down into the backyard garden of her central St. Catharines home.

He uttered not a single word when he attempted to strangle her and then muzzle her screams.

He made no sound while he repeatedly seared her flesh with a lit cigarette.

Finally, when Debbie drove her knee into his groin with all the power her spirit could muster, her shadowy attacker broke his silence.

“Even then it was just a low groan. You could barely hear it. There were no words.â€Â�

Fear has been an ever-present companion since that night. She will not set foot in her own backyard alone.

Debbie’s son and husband, Norm, were both out last Saturday evening and she decided to make the most of her solitude.

“I don’t spent a lot of time in the back yard during the day because I am allergic to bees,â€Â� she says. “So what I do in the backyard I do at night.â€Â�

It was after 10 p.m. The daytime heat still hung in the humid air.

Debbie poured herself a glass of red wine and slipped into a rocker in the backyard of her Lowell Avenue home.

No distractions. No noise. It was just Debbie and the night.

“It was nice, perfect really,â€Â� she says.
“I was enjoying my time alone.â€Â�

full story: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/w...News+%2D+Local

[Duke]

Yikes.

[Star]

ummm yeah! I'm a little scared now and i'm not the type who gets scared very easy. Gerry works long hours so he's not home usually until around 11 pm or later. Can't count on my dog because he is a chicken in a dog suit. I'll jsut have to be extra careful when I go out there for my smoke at night.

I warned kassandra that she's not to step out of the house when it gets dark. not even in our yard.

I wish they would let us know what this guy looks like so we can keep an eye out for him. our cops here are so retarded. they should've warned us of this weeks ago.

[Luba]

Have you learned any more of the scary situation? Do you have a neighbourhood watch, and does anyone know how effective they are? We have neighbourhood watch signs on a lot of streets, and yet there are a lot of breakins anyway, but I can't parallel if they are the same streets which include the watch programs.

[Star]

i found out which house it was that this woman lived in. it's down the street on my side of the street not too far from me at all. less then 30 numbers away. A friend of mine knows the woman and her whole family. I drove by the house last night on my way to my sister in law's house and her place is all fenced in. i think he would've had to open a gate to get in. i have no gates on each side of my house. I told gerry that he's going to be putting some gates that lock there before winter comes. he was going to do that anyhow to keep erika safe in the yard.

they still haven't published a description of this guy. there have been attacks like this all over the city apparently. apparently those cases and the one that happned on my street aren't related so that means it's a different guy.

[Merika]

We don't have those problems...too many people here have guns in their houses. If he was in someone's yard....his A$$ would be smoked in about 5 minutes.

Will the dog bark if someone is in the backyard? Too mad I can bring Cracker over. He'd have a field day with a stranger in the yard to chase.

[Vautrin]

Merika, the only problem with the higher availability of guns, is that the attacker would have used one too.

If you are going to the bank, to get some money from your account, you don't take a gun with you. If you are going to the bank to get some money from other people's accounts, you will need a means of coercion.

[Star]

the dog will bark if he hears someone in our yard. no doubt about that. he's got a big mouth but he won;t be any kind of protection. he's a chicken in a dog suit. LOL!

they still haven't found the guy. there seems to be more then one now. we have the 12 mile trail and 4 women have been attacked there and they say that those incidents and the one on my street are not related so that means there's more then one idiot out there terrorizing women.

I went to a friend's house last night to drop off her computer tower that I worked on for her yesterday and it was pretty late when I came back home (11 ish). For the first time in my life, I was really scared to be outside just getting in and out of my car. I was happy to be home.

I know what to do and what not to do if I was attacked but when it's actually happening to you and you fear for your life, things don't go as planned. that's what scares me.