Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her, cannot move back to her home due to the volume of death threats she is still receiving, her lawyers told NBC on Sunday.
One of Ford’s attorneys, Debra Katz, told NBC’s Kasie Hunt that it’s going to be “quite some time” before Ford and her family can return home.
“Her family has been through a lot,” Katz said. “They are not living at home. It’s going to be quite some time before they’re able to live at home. The threats have been unending. It’s deplorable.”
“It’s been very frightening,” Katz added.
Ford two weeks ago publicly testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about her allegation that Kavanaugh pinned her down and tried to take off her clothes, at one point allegedly pressing his hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming, during a high school party in 1982.
Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court on Saturday after a bruising battle that also involved sexual misconduct allegations from two other women.
Kavanaugh vehemently denied all of the allegations.
Ford’s lawyers during the NBC interview denounced the one-week FBI investigation into the women’s accusations, saying it was not thorough. The FBI reportedly did not interview Ford or Kavanaugh as part of the probe.
Hunt asked Katz and Ford’s other attorney, Lisa Banks, if they believe Ford was treated better than Anita Hill, the woman who publicly testified in 1991 about her accusation that then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas had sexually harassed her. Ford’s allegations and her treatment were frequently compared to Hill’s during the confirmation battle.
Hill’s hearing was preceded by a three-day FBI investigation.
“With Anita Hill, there was a full FBI investigation before there was ever a hearing,” Banks said. “That did not occur here. This process was far worse.”
Banks and Katz said Ford was “horrified” by President Trump’s comments about her last week, during which he mocked Ford’s testimony in an attempt to undermine her credibility.
“She was upset by it, yes, as any woman would be who’s the victim of sexual assault who was mocked and belittled by anyone, never mind the president of the United States,” Banks said.
Many Republican senators who voted for Kavanaugh’s confirmation, such as Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), often a key swing vote, have said they believe Ford was attacked as a teenager but do not believe Kavanaugh was her assailant.
Banks on NBC said Ford knows who assaulted her.
“She testified she knew him, he knew her, and she knows exactly who sexually assaulted her on that day,” Banks said.