Acid Attack 'Victim' Racist/Religious Nut Liar

[Kanastrous]

VANCOUVER, Wash — Police on Friday described a Vancouver, Wash., woman who poured acid over her own face and then claimed to have been attacked as an "upset, shaking, crying, very sad, very sad little girl."

Speaking on the TODAY show, Commander Marla Schuman said investigators had quickly come to the conclusion that Bethany Storro, 28, had faked the Aug. 30 attack, but that "until you actually hear it from her own mouth" they could not be entirely sure.

Police Chief Clifford Cook said at a Thursday afternoon news conference that Storro told detectives the truth during an interview after increasing discrepancies emerged in her story.

Her interview was conducted after a search of her home, which she shares with her parents, police said. Interviews with her family are continuing, they said.

Police will turn over their findings to prosecutors who will decide if charges will be filed against Storro.

"We'll hand this over to the prosecuting attorney," Schuman said. "This was [an] incredibly expensive [investigation] and wasted a lot of very valuable resources."

Schuman told TODAY's Matt Lauer the Storro's family was shocked by the turnabout.

"This was not something that was on their radar screen," she said. "Her family, her friends, they were all devastated that this had happened to her. I think it came as a shock to most of them that she was actually in a state of mind and could inflict something like this. ...

"Most of us don't know how anybody could be in that state of mind and inflict what obviously had to be incredible pain upon themselves."

The revelation followed the cancellation of Storro's scheduled Thursday appearance on "Oprah."

On her Facebook, Storro had said she walked away from the interview because the show might stray from the religious inspiration she planned to deliver.

However, others in Vancouver saw the move as evidence that Storro's story was phony from the beginning.

Storro originally claimed a black woman with a ponytail threw acid in her face at night as she was celebrating a new job and had just bought a pair of sunglasses.

Splash patterns and other parts of the story, like the wearing of sunglasses at night, led to the unraveling of Storro's story, police said.

Police said it was important to get the word of Storro's confession out immediately to assure the public knew that the Esther Park area of downtown Vancouver, scene of the alleged attack, was safe.

Just a week ago, NBC affiliate KGW TV of Portland, Ore., reported that a remarkably upbeat and candid Storro sat in front of reporters at Legacy Emanuel Hospital and described how she was injured.

She claimed her attacker said "Hey pretty girl, do you want to drink this?" before splashing the acid that burned her face.

Storro said she held the news conference then to draw attention to efforts to find the attacker, but also to talk about her faith.

"I'm here today because of Jesus Christ," she said at the time, adding that the strength of her faith would allow her to move forward.

However, doubts about Storro's veracity were already spreading.

Media analyses, including a posting in The Vancouver Voice, questioned why in her photograph acid burns were absent from her face along her hairline, eyes or lips and none were reported on her neck, shoulders or hair or inside her nose or mouth.

The Vancouver Voice also had reported that homeless witnesses claimed Storro was alone when she fell to the ground screaming.

Chats on The Columbian newspaper website had also questioned the veracity of Storro's tale.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39221785/ns ... nd_courts/

A 'very sad, very sad little girl?' Fuck that noise, she's an adult who out of apparent...vanity? despair for attention? desire for cheap-ass sainthood? racial animus? all of the above? deliberately injured herself so as to (a) make herself the center of attention and (b) make life just a bit more unnerving for any black women with ponytails who happened to be out and about, while her story had legs.

Too bad she missed her fucking eyes. Although I guess then she might be sucking public-assistance resources out of Canadian taxpayers for the rest of her life, so maybe not...

[Zed]

How about: she's an adult with obvious mental problems?

[Kanastrous]

If a mental-health professional examines her and reports that they find her certifiable, I'll take their word for it. People do incredibly stupid, malicious, vain things to their own detriment without necessarily being clinical, while they're about it.

[Gil Hamilton]

How about: she's an adult with obvious mental problems?

Clearly, but that doesn't invalidate any of the above. She very obviously planned to use her supposed assault to proselytize and spread the Good News, even if she was crazy. "Religious Nut Lair" seems pretty accurate to me.

[Kanastrous]

Although in all fairness a 'religious nut lair' sounds like the secret place where religious nuts congregate for meetings

[The Duchess of Zeon]

This was so retarded. Instant climate of racial fear! Thanks a lot, bitch, have fun in Gig Harbor. We'll see how you take religion over there....

Anyway, living in Vancouver, it was sort of a big deal, and understandably, as the psycho originally presumed to be responsible could have randomly attacked anyone else again. Of course it certainly contributed to racial panic which makes the thing worse, and black women were stopped and searched who roughly matched the description, and detained for some time... So, I'd like to see her charged with some kind of hate crime for inciting racial disorder in addition to getthing thrown away for making false statements. Due to the huge amount of donations she received from around the world (which they're trying to return now), she should also be charged with multiple counts of fraud.... Preferably one for each donation, but one for each of the two bank accounts established for the donations would be sufficient. I've heard rumour at least--which is probably not true but seems possible--that she was originally trying to damage her face just to get her insurance to cover a facelift and then went overboard and concocted this story to succeed in getting away with it.

[Kanastrous]

I doubt this would mesh with accepted medical ethics but ideally she should be left untreated so that her face can serve as a sort of 'scarlet letter.' Save the medical resources for someone who isn't a lying, race-baiting, self-mutilating fraudster...

I don't know enough to guess as to whether or not she's actually evil, but her actions certainly are and it's a pity that any public resources have gone towards her falsehoods or her treatment.

[Temujin]

Although in all fairness a 'religious nut lair' sounds like the secret place where religious nuts congregate for meetings

They do exist, and go by many names including church, mosque, temple, institute, etc.

I doubt this would mesh with accepted medical ethics but ideally she should be left untreated so that her face can serve as a sort of 'scarlet letter.' Save the medical resources for someone who isn't a lying, race-baiting, self-mutilating fraudster...

I don't know enough to guess as to whether or not she's actually evil, but her actions certainly are and it's a pity that any public resources have gone towards her falsehoods or her treatment.

Given she's a religious wacko, she's probably pretty weak minded. Most of the sheep are like that, with only the fuckers pulling the strings at the top having any real brains; everyone else just gets brainwashed into following the party line. It's likely she's been indoctrinated with so much bullshit that it just comes to her automatically; like why she chose to claim her assailant was black.

[Kanastrous]

Possibly. Although for my part I don't much care.

[Crossroads Inc.]

I've heard rumour at least--which is probably not true but seems possible--that she was originally trying to damage her face just to get her insurance to cover a facelift and then went overboard and concocted this story to succeed in getting away with it.

And I can totally see that happening too. In a way it almost makes more sense then a religious nutjob who did this JUST to frame random blackpeople. But even that makes me shake my head. I mean just imagine it.

"I want to look pretty! I want a face lift!"
"But I don't have the money... I KNOW! I will throw acid on my face, and then claim insurance to pay for it!

[Shroom Man 777]

Pretty sick, twisted and crazy stuff. Still, I'm glad that she didn't disfigure herself too badly and hope she recovers from her injuries. Hopefully she can also get some other treatment for, you know, her brain problems. 'Cause, damn, people like that need help.

[SAMAS]

I am reminded of the woman who claimed an Obama supporter attacked her and carved a "B" on her face. Guess who really did it?

[Crossroads Inc.]

I am reminded of the woman who claimed an Obama supporter attacked her and carved a "B" on her face. Guess who really did it?

God I remember the uproar over that. It was going 24/7 on fox and the right wing blogs.
When it came out the whole thing was a set up and she carved her own face up...

Crickets, as usual from the right.

[Zixinus]

Wow. It is said that if stupidity would hurt, she wouldn't she screaming, she would have shattered all her vocal cords before she could make a whimper.

She probably unconsciously realized the same, so she decided to make her stupidity actually hurt. Too bad that apparently it wasn't enough.

It's one thing to be racist, that I can at least understand, but to be so racist that you pour acid on your own face?

[Broomstick]

In case anyone was wondering about the damage, this is her current face (more or less):


Here are more typical results of actual acid attacks:


It is actually typical for people who self-inflict injuries in the manner of Sorro - for attention, sympathy, some other ulterior motive - that they don't really do that much damage to themselves. I'm sure that the relatively minor extent of her injuries, as well as oddities in her story, did raise some suspicions. I don't doubt that it hurt when she poured acid on herself, but really, her suffering compared to that of true victims is pretty small.

[Phantasee]

Wait, there's a Vancouver in Washington, too? That could be confusing.

Also, a NSFW tag would be appropriate, now that we have such graphic pictures... because she is hella ugly.

[Aaron]

Yeah there is, but its not as confusing as you would think. Being from the Vancouver area, if we discussed the American one, it would be "Vancouver, Washington."

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Yeah there is, but its not as confusing as you would think. Being from the Vancouver area, if we discussed the American one, it would be "Vancouver, Washington."

Yeah, I just get in the habit of specifying the state like that to make it clear, though even in Washington State (which I also specify, to avoid Americans from outside the Pacific Northwest assuming I'm referring to Washington D.C.) maybe about 5% of people manage to assume I'm referring to Vancouver, BC anyway.

[Kanastrous]

...and now the prosecutor is filing charges.

Good. I hope they stick.

A prosecutor in the case of a Washington state woman who falsely claimed a stranger had thrown acid in her face said Tuesday that the decision to charge her with theft was an easy one.

Clark County Deputy Prosecutor Tony Golik told NBC's TODAY show that the charges are based on the press conferences that 28-year-old Bethany Storro held and the money she collected after the Aug. 30 hoax.

Storro has since admitted smearing drain cleaner on her face in an attempt to kill herself.

"It was clear from the evidence that we had multiple felony crimes that were committed and it seemed like a straightforward decision that felony charges should be filed," Golik said.

Despite the charges, Golik said there are "very mixed emotions" in the community about Storro's actions.

"There are a lot of people in the community that are very upset with her behavior and want to see her pay, and there are other people who say this is a very sad case," he said.

Court records indicate Storro has spent about $1,500 of the $28,000 collected on dinner for her parents, clothes for herself and a bill for a previous laser facial peel.

Storro faces three second-degree felony theft charges. If convicted as charged, she could spend a maximum of five years in jail.

Storro's parents have said all money raised for her will be returned.

In court papers, Storro is quoted as saying she was trying to kill herself, or at least get a new face, when she put caustic drain cleaner on her face Aug. 30. She admitted last week her injuries were self-inflicted.

Storro had claimed said she was splashed in the face with the liquid near the Esther Park area of downtown Vancouver.

"I thought there would be no evidence of me doing it to myself," Storro told police, according to NBC affiliate KGW TV of Portland Ore. "And then you guys — I thought that you guys would give up on trying to find the person and it would be done," court documents showed.

Court documents showed Storro said she self-administered the acid to her face with drain cleaner purchased in a local hardware store. Storro bought a pair of gloves at the time, records showed, according to KGW TV's report.

Storro told a detective that at first, she was trying to kill herself. Secondly, she stated, if that proved not to be fatal, then she could get her face redone, KGW TV reported.

"Then when I realized it wasn't killing me, I thought maybe this was the answer to all my problems. To have a completely different face," she said.

She said she bought the gloves to wear while using towels to apply the caustic substance to her face in a restroom of a park near Clark college, hours before she reported being attacked.

Storro originally claimed a black woman with a ponytail threw acid in her face at night as she was celebrating a new job and had just bought a pair of sunglasses.

Splash patterns and other parts of the story, like the wearing of sunglasses at night, led to the unraveling of Storro's story, police said.

Police said it was important to get the word of Storro's confession out immediately to assure the public knew that the Esther Park area of downtown Vancouver, scene of the alleged attack, was safe.

Just a week earlier, KGW TV reported that a remarkably upbeat and candid Storro sat in front of reporters at Legacy Emanuel Hospital and described how she was injured.

She claimed her attacker said "Hey pretty girl, do you want to drink this?" before splashing the acid that burned her face.

Storro said she held the news conference then to draw attention to efforts to find the attacker, but also to talk about her faith.

"I'm here today because of Jesus Christ," she said at the time, adding that the strength of her faith would allow her to move forward.

However, doubts about Storro's veracity were already spreading.

Media analyses, including a posting in The Vancouver Voice, questioned why in her photograph acid burns were absent from her face along her hairline, eyes or lips and none were reported on her neck, shoulders or hair or inside her nose or mouth.

The Vancouver Voice also had reported that homeless witnesses claimed Storro was alone when she fell to the ground screaming.

Chats on The Columbian newspaper website had also questioned the veracity of Storro's tale.

Storro said that while in the hospital, a Safeway representative gave her a check for $3,000, which was placed into her personal account, KGW TV reported.

She said she spent about $1,500 of the money on dinners for her parents, a train ticket for her sister, "stuff at Target", clothes for herself and round-trip train tickets to Seattle for her and her mother for the weekend of Sept. 12. She also used the money to pay off a $620 bill to a Portland clinic where she had a laser peel on Aug. 30, according to KGW TV.

A fund set up at Umpqua Bank for Storro, in the name of her mother Nancy Neuwelt, has accumulated $4,596.04. That included $800 from a fundraiser at Anytime Fitness.

An account at Riverview Savings Bank in Vancouver has $20,000 in Storro's name. The bank had held a fundraising golf tournament for her.

Nancy and Joseph Neuwelt said last week they didn't know why their daughter lied.

"Our hope is the medical community can find the answer," Nancy Neuwelt said at a Friday news conference outside their Vancouver home. "She’s obviously dealing with some deep internal psychological problems we had no knowledge of. She has a long road ahead of her, and we are going to walk it with her."

The couple said Storro, 28, was "extremely sorry" for causing the community pain.

The Neuwelts said they each believed "as any good parent would" that their daughter had been the victim of an attack. They said did not know until Thursday that the ordeal was a hoax.

Joseph Neuwelt said all money donated to his daughter's relief fund will be returned through the proper channels.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39278904/ns ... nd_courts/

I wonder why they're not also pursuing filing-a-false-police-report (maybe they are, but it's not a felony and so not mentioned...) and I guess that deliberately trying to stir up racial animus by claiming your assailant was a black person isn't in the DA's mind worth pursuing (assuming that's a chargeable offense in Vancouver, and of course if it's a long shot to get a conviction...it probably isn't)...

...on the face of it (no pun intended) I feel sorry for her folks.

[Broomstick]

I feel sorry for her folks, but would be delighted if for the next 5 years she wakes up every morning in jail and has to face the day with the scars and facial fuck-ups she self-induced.