Rachael Denhollander's brave journey: Lone voice to 'army' at Larry Nassar's sentencing

LANSING, Michigan — Rachael and Jacob Denhollander have been telling their kids that mommy has been going to "business meetings" this week. But reality slipped into the conversation Tuesday when their oldest child, a 6-year-old boy, asked his father what a pedophile is.

"We've grown so accustomed to talking about this sort of thing that ... I've been really grateful we haven't slipped up in front of the kids," Jacob said.

"Up until just yesterday, apparently," Rachael said.

They told the boy it's a crime and left it at that.

Rachael and Jacob shared that story on the 75-minute, early-morning drive Wednesday to a courthouse in Lansing, Mich., where all the stresses Rachael had been feeling over the last 16 months would come to a head.

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After court, there would be a news conference and then appearances scheduled for CNN and BBC. She had an op-ed to write for the New York Times. 

"I'm supposed to get it done tonight," Rachael said. "That might be a bit of a stretch." 

As the van neared the courthouse, Jacob suggested he drop off Rachael in front. Why? “Because you're pregnant."

Rachael said she'd walk from the garage.

And thus began the latest chapter in a journey launched with an email to a newspaper, one that raised her out of obscurity, exposed her to criticism, and eventually accomplished her goal.

One day, she was a lawyer and stay-at-home mom of three kids, all 5 and under, living in a small home in Louisville.

When she left Wednesday she had an international identity.

The Denhollanders did manage to keep up some routines while staying in the Kalamazoo home where Rachael grew up. There were bedtime prayers and singing for the kids. They sing "Amen" and some verses of "Amazing Grace."

Giving a voice to others

Denhollander was the first woman to put her name on public allegations that a famous, beloved former USA Gymnastics doctor was a child molester. Rachael would be the last of 156 survivors to testify in a sentencing hearing that would get him a sentence of 175 years.

That outcome was unimaginable on the morning IndyStar published its first story in an ongoing investigation of USA Gymnastics and how it handled sexual abuse complaints. On the morning of publication, Denhollander emailed the reporters.

"I recently read the article titled 'Out of Balance' published by the IndyStar. My experience may not be relevant to your investigation, but I am emailing to report an incident that may be. I was not molested by my coach, but I was molested by Dr. Larry Nassar, the team doctor for USAG. I was fifteen years old, and it was under the guise of medical treatment for my back."

The alleged abuse had occurred more than 10 years earlier, and had never been reported to police. Nassar hadn't been affiliated with USA Gymnastics since 2015. And, it seemed at the time, the doctor might have been performing a legitimate procedure.

Denhollander said Nassar's sterling reputation was part of the reason she had hesitated to come forward earlier.

Before the interview Denhollander expressed her motivation in an email to reporters in August 2016.

"My hope with a story would be that it would give a voice to others who have also been victims, and encourage them to come forward as well. I know this will be a long road, if it goes anywhere at all ... ."

On the day of the interview with an IndyStar reporter and photographer, toys were outside the front door of the Denhollanders' small home. Books lined the shelves inside. It broke some of the palpable tension in the room when the photographer asked the well-educated Denhollander to recite the ABCs for a sound check.

Then things turned serious again. Denhollander remained composed as she recounted the abuse by the famous doctor at age 15 as a club-level gymnast. After about 45 minutes, the interview ended and Denhollander shared 110 pages of medical records related to her treatment by Nassar.

Afterward, she recalled, the Denhollanders sat on the couch wrapped in a blanket, knowing that the following week Rachael would report a criminal allegation about Nassar to Michigan State University Police and a Title IX violation to the university’s Office of Institutional Equity.

Denhollander made that report on Aug. 29, 2016.

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In September, IndyStar published a story with Denhollander's accusations against Nassar as well as those of an anonymous accuser who later went public as Olympian Jamie Dantzscher.

Despite having been only a club-level gymnast, Denhollander was a natural as the face of the criminal and civil cases — poised, smart, sincere. Hers was not the face or voice of guile.

'I knew what it would take'

The road, Denhollander made clear, did not end Wednesday morning in a courtroom, where she made a resounding victim impact statement as the last of 156 survivors to speak before the sentencing of Larry Nassar.

In a 36-minute statement, Denhollander posed a question at the outset and returned to it at various times: "How much is a little girl worth?"

She remained composed throughout, using her voice to accentuate points. In previous days, numerous survivors had broken down while recounting their abuse for clicking cameras, a live stream on the internet and Nassar sitting at the witness stand.

"May the horror expressed in this courtroom over the past seven days," Denhollander said, "be motivation for anyone and everyone, no matter the context, to take responsibility if they have erred in protecting a child, to understand the incredible failures that led to this week and to do it better the next time."

The packed courtroom gave her a standing ovation. The judge called her the "five-star general" of the army of survivors, as they called themselves.

"You started the tidal wave," Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Rosemarie Aquilina said. "You made all of this happen. You made all of these voices matter. Your sister survivors and I thank you. You are the bravest person I've ever had in my courtroom."

When Denhollander finished, she hugged Jacob tightly.

There had been sobbing and crying from the audience often in the morning. When the judge announced the sentence, Rachael sat next to Jacob. There was some clapping in the audience, but Rachael's expression remained stoic.

"I knew what it would take to get here," Rachael said during the ride to court, "But I had kind of just presumed that when it was done, it would be done. And I'm not sure that's going to be case."

Call IndyStar reporter Mark Alesia at (317) 444-6311. Follow him on Twitter: @markalesia.

Call IndyStar reporter Marisa Kwiatkowski at (317) 444-6135. Follow her on Twitter: @IndyMarisaK.

Call IndyStar reporter Tim Evans at (317) 444-6204. Follow him on Twitter: @starwatchtim.

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