ABC/Craig Sjodin
Caelynn Miller-Keyes has been a front-runner so far on The Bachelor 2019 with star Colton Underwood. On episode 4 of the show, she gets her first solo date with Underwood and Reality Steve has reported that this is the episode on which she opens up about getting raped in college. As a pageant winner, Miller-Keyes previously has been public about her sexual assault, sharing her experience and hoping to raise awareness.
Ahead of episode 4, Reality Steve reported that show host Chris Harrison stated on EXTRA that, “The conversation between Colton and Caelynn is unbelievably vulnerable, open and revealing. Caelynn kind of started it with something she let go, and I think Colton felt comfortable and I think he felt like he owed her certain things in that space because she had just revealed so much personally. It really is a depth and emotion that we have never really faced before.”
So, what exactly happened to Miller-Keyes? When she was a sophomore at Virginia Commonwealth University, she was allegedly drugged by a group of male acquaintances who put something in her drink, as well as in the drinks of two of her friends. Miller-Keyes told People, “I woke up the next morning and I was completely naked in my bed and I knew that something bad had happened.” She also said that, “Another guy, I was passed out on a couch from the drugs, and … in front of his fraternity brothers … lifted up my dress, they watched and laughed and took photos and Snapchats. It was horrible.”
People reported that Miller-Keyes wasn’t confident about filing a police report at the time of the incident. Miller-Keyes explained, “They told me they wouldn’t do a rape kit unless I filed a police report. At that point, these were friends of mine and I wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, so I wasn’t positive I wanted to file a police report. But later that night, I did, once I figured out what had really happened … The reporting process is a lot more difficult than people realize. I had no idea what to do … Thankfully, I had a good support system and people went to a second hospital with me and I was able to get a rape kit and speak to authorities and go through that process. But it’s a lot more difficult than it seems.”
Miller-Keyes has tried to use her experience to help others. Her Miss Universe bio discusses her platform, stating that, “As a survivor, she is a dedicated advocate for sexual assault prevention by speaking to high school and college students about the importance of consent. She has been instrumental in helping victims have voices by changing the Title IX policies to protect college students, having survived more than one attack personally.”
When talking to Colton Underwood and sharing her personal secret, she said that it has gotten in the way of relationships she had in the past. Miller-Keyes told Underwood that the incident happened at a fraternity house. She said that the results of the rape kit were inconclusive and that all except for one of the men got away with it. She said that the one guy who was caught was expelled. Miller-Keyes said she hid it from her family for almost a year.
Underwood said that it was devastating to hear. He then revealed that he was previously in a relationship with someone who was sexually abused.