'I Felt Trapped': Woman Accuses State Rep. Of Sexual Misconduct
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The young woman accusing a Minnesota lawmaker of unwanted touching and physical contact is sharing her story with WCCO.
Emily Schlecht filed a report of sexual misconduct last week against Republican Representative Rod Hamilton. She says Hamilton touched her inappropriately and kissed her without her consent at his apartment.
The representative has since been suspended as chairman of the Agriculture Finance Committee.
It's been an unusual week for Schlecht who — at 24 years old — has been seeing her story in headlines all over the country.
"Seeing it plastered all over the internet, and how fast everybody got a hold of it was really re-victimizing for the second time, just because it's like, I feel as though -- it's hard when you are going up against someone in a position of authority," Schlecht said.
Schlecht says she met Representative Rod Hamilton (R) through her work as an advocate for sexual assault victims. She reached out to him to talk about her own sexual assault she experienced in 2015, in which authorities declined to press charges.
"I felt inspired by his wanting to do something for victims and wanting to help and how his heart broke for other victims," she said.
Schlecht and Rep. Hamilton met on April 13 at the Capitol to discuss her case. It was the weekend of the major April snow storm, and Schlecht had plans to go out of town. Schlecht says the representative suggested she stay at his apartment and avoid driving.
"I felt comfortable and I trusted the situation so I said yeah," she said.
Rep. Hamilton drove them to his St. Paul apartment.
"I sat on the recliner and he sat on the couch," Schlecht said. "And at one point he had told me to come over there and again, I thought it was to sit by him, and it was like, everything was fine and so I went over there and he had placed a pillow on his lap and had me lay down, and that's kind of when everything from there started."
Schlecht says Rep. Hamilton stroked her arms, face, hair, and hands for an hour and a half. She says he also asked her four times to lie down with him and that he kissed her several times on the cheek.
"I cried myself to sleep, I felt trapped," Schlecht said. "I felt isolated and I felt as though I was taken advantage of."
Schlecht says she filed a report because she felt violated, and didn't want the behavior to be seen as OK for any other victims. She was clear in her interview with WCCO that he never touched her in intimate areas on her body.
"Consent isn't just a sexual assault issue," she said. "Consent is an issue in any form of touch."
WCCO reached out to Rep. Hamilton for comment who referred to the statement he released earlier this week and said there will be "no further comments."
The representative has said he regrets the effect his actions had on the woman, adding: "I intended to offer comfort and compassion to a person who was going through a difficult time."
Schlecht says she isn't sure if the representative should lose his job, but wants him to own-up to the alleged behavior. Officials at the Minnesota House are investigating the allegations, which Hamilton self-reported.
Police say there's not enough evidence to file charges.
