Jane Doe No More
Authors: M. William Phelps
JANE
DOE
NO
MORE
ALSO
BY
M
.
WILLIAM
PHELPS
Perfect Poison
Lethal Guardian
Every Move You Make
Sleep in Heavenly Peace
Murder in the Heartland
Because You Loved Me
If Looks Could Kill
I’ll Be Watching You
Deadly Secrets
Cruel Death
Death Trap
Kill For Me
Failures of the Presidents
(coauthor)
Nathan Hale: The Life and Death of America’s First Spy
The Devil’s Rooming House: The True Story of America’s Deadliest Female Serial Killer
The Devil’s Right Hand: The Tragic Story of the Colt Family Curse
Love Her to Death
Too Young to Kill
Never See Them Again
Kiss of the She-Devil
Murder, New England
JANE
DOE
NO
MORE
My 15-Year Fight to Reclaim My Identity—
A True Story of Survival, Hope, and Redemption
M
.
WILLIAM
PHELPS
National Best-selling Author
Star of the Investigation Discovery series
Dark Minds
WITH
DONNA
PALOMBA
Founder, Jane Doe No More, Inc.
LYONS PRESS
Guilford, Connecticut
An imprint of Globe Pequot Press
For those who have been sexually
assaulted but are afraid to come forward—
and for the hope that this book helps,
in some small way, to begin the
process of healing.
Copyright © 2012 by M. William Phelps
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed to Globe Pequot Press, Attn: Rights and Permissions Department, PO Box 480, Guilford, CT 06437.
Lyons Press is an imprint of Globe Pequot Press.
All photos courtesy of Donna Palomba unless otherwise noted.
Project editor: Meredith Dias
Layout: Sue Murray
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.
ISBN 978-0-7627-7880-5
Printed in the United States of America
E-ISBN 978-0-7627-8839-2
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 A Stranger in the House
CHAPTER 5 Life Goes On . . . But Only for a Moment
CHAPTER 7 Your Lies Won’t Leave Me Alone
CHAPTER 11 No Two Victims Are Alike
CHAPTER 15 Speaking of Hunches
CHAPTER 18 The King Can Do No Wrong
CHAPTER 24 Still Jane after All These Years
CHAPTER 34 Suicide Is Painless
AUTHORS
’
NOTE
The book in your hands conveys a true story. It is a research-backed, collaborative memoir, mostly supported by the documentation and recollections of one woman, Donna Palomba, and suffused with her very own words. A working mother of two, Donna was living her version of the American dream—family, husband, kids, a good job—when the unthinkable happened: Her home was invaded by a masked intruder.
What took place in Donna’s bedroom next was horrifying, tragic. Yet what she endured after she had been sexually assaulted is where the tragedy turned to heroism. I do not want to delve too deeply into Donna’s incredible tale of determination, survival, and triumph here; I simply want to say a few things about how and why I decided to get involved in this story and tell it in this manner.
Over the course of twelve months, Donna dictated her story to me, and I put that story into a narrative with the added help of the documentation available—thousands of pages of police reports, trial transcripts, depositions, personal notes (throughout my career I’ve never seen more comprehensive, detailed entries from a victim of a crime, including conversations, thoughts, and quotes, recorded on the day of each incident), and many other forms of research. In some cases there is documentation to back up Donna’s story directly; in others, the story relies solely on Donna’s memory of the event(s). I conducted several interviews for this book, but did not set out to speak to all the people involved. My aim with Donna was to tell this story through her eyes and her memory. She lived it. This book is
not
one of my usual pieces of investigative journalism. It is Donna’s version of the events of her life, told by me.
Throughout the book (beginning below my author’s note) the reader will find sections—the more personal aspects of the narrative—told in Donna’s first-person voice and set in italics. This dual storytelling is not a new literary device; but it is rather uncommon. Donna and I wanted to give the reader that all-important personal connection, beyond simply the quoting or paraphrasing of a source, that a story such as hers demands. To convey exactly how emotionally trying and altogether frightening Donna’s life became took courage on her part, and I wanted Donna to have a distinct voice, especially as she related her battle against the system and her discovery of the shocking identity of her attacker.
This story is about Donna Palomba’s life. My role was to frame her narrative and point out various aspects of the case the reader needs to understand.
I pored through literally thousands of pages of documents, interviewed Donna at length, studied her notes and diaries, exchanged hundreds of e-mails, got to know her on a personal level, and spoke to several of the people deeply involved in this case. Whenever someone is quoted, that dialogue was taken from those documents, trial transcripts, interviews I conducted, and Donna’s recollections.
Even without all the research, anyone would know that Donna Palomba is a fighter, an unbelievable woman, and a survivor. She is not a victim.
When tragedy strikes, some of us—perhaps myself included—might cower into a fetal ball. We might allow the enduring trauma to envelop every sense of our being. Very few would stand up to that misery and look it in the eye. Fewer still would continue to fight when victory did not seem possible. Donna is one of the brave few. Faced with defeat time and again, with nearly an entire city against her, Donna persevered. When the identity of her attacker was exposed, Donna did not lose her strength; she held her ground in defense of truth and justice, and continued her fight. Donna did not want to see another human being have to go through what she did.
What follows is her incredible journey. Donna lived as a “Jane Doe” for nearly fifteen years. Her identity was stolen from her. If you are a rape survivor (or know someone who is), or if you have been sexually assaulted and have not reported it (or know somebody who was), please read Donna’s story and visit the Jane Doe No More website. The information there can help you recover your identity and take back your life.