Where Are the Alleged Rape Survivors ‘Karen and Sharon Sanders’ Today? – After twin sisters Karen and Sharon Sanders accused him of raping them, Vincent Simmons was convicted of two charges of attempted aggravated rape in 1977 and sentenced to 100 years in prison in Marksville, Louisiana.
The twins were 14 years old at the time, and Simmons was 25. Simmons has maintained his innocence throughout his life, and after being sentenced to prison, he spent decades fighting to have his conviction overturned.
Simmons was ultimately successful in getting a hearing earlier this year. When the district attorney declined to retry him, the judge decided that he did not receive a fair trial, and he was released. Three days before his 70th birthday, Simmons was released from prison. He had been incarcerated for 44 years.
Karen and Sharon Sanders’ lives were permanently changed on May 9, 1977, as a result of an alleged sexual assault they suffered at the hands of Vincent Simmons. After all, as CBS‘ ‘48 Hours: Please Don’t Tell‘ revealed, the situation not only damaged their overall well-being, but it also only ended in early 2022, about 45 years later.
So, if you’re interested in learning more about the twin sisters, including their personal histories and current whereabouts, don’t worry; we’ve got you covered.
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Karen and Sharon Sanders: Who Are They?
Karen and Sharon of Marksville, Louisiana, were 14 years old in 1977 and living an everyday life surrounded by loved ones, blissfully ignorant that it would not last long. They were at their grandparents’ house on that fatal day, according to their recollections in the CBS show, until their then-18-year-old first cousin Keith Laborde came around to ask them over to his house.
He planned to drop them off at home as well, although they did stop at 7-11 for gas. The group allegedly initially encountered a Black man at the petrol station, whom they later recognised as Vincent. According to the twins, as soon as the man requested for a ride, they became uneasy, but Keith obliged, and the man led the trio to the dark and barren Little California Road.
He allegedly pulled out a knife, shoved the young adult into the trunk, and then severely assaulted Karen and Sharon before shutting them up with Keith.
“If you tell anyone, I know where y’all live,” the man said when he finally let them go, Sharon recalled. ‘I have acquaintances.’ ‘And I will return,’ he threatened, scaring them to their core. Karen and Sharon were only able to keep the alleged incident quiet for about two weeks before approaching the local authorities to ensure there would be no going back.
Apart from claiming they couldn’t describe their assailant because “all Black people look the same” before selecting Vincent from a lineup, the sisters’ claims contained other inconsistencies. Between their initial police interviews and their trial evidence two months later, they shifted from never mentioning a weapon to asserting he had both a knife and a gun. They even claimed that they knew his name because he had introduced himself.
Karen and Sharon Sanders: Where Are They Now?
Vincent Simmons‘ defence failed to identify these discrepancies for the jury, and the sexual relationship between Karen and Keith was unknown at the time, resulting in Vincent’s conviction. While some have claimed that the trio made up the rape story because Keith supposedly had consensual sex with Karen that night after putting Sharon in the trunk, others have claimed that Vincent is to blame.
Karen even acknowledged their link to CBS News, but only before May 9, 1977. “Those are two different instances,” she explained. Keith categorically denied having had such an affair with Karen, claiming that they had “played around like children.”
In terms of their current situation, Karen and Sharon appear to have progressed to the best of their abilities, despite the fact that they choose to keep their lives out of the spotlight these days. They have each other as well as their own families, and they are most likely still living in Louisiana.
Furthermore, after Vincent was given a new trial on appeal in early 2022, they reached an agreement with the District Attorney’s Office to permanently remove the accusations against him. “We’ve had enough,” the twin sisters said they didn’t want to go through another trial.
We’ve fought for 44 years, we’ve had our fill, and we’re OK with that. We’re exhausted. We want it to be over with. He entered the room guilty, remains guilty, and will die guilty. Praise God, and we’ve made it 44 years!”
On May 9, 1977, white twin 14 year old sisters, Karen & Sharon Sanders claimed they were sexually assaulted in Marksville, Louisiana by a man they met at a 7-11 and gave a ride in a car being driven by their cousin. Initially, the sisters claimed not to know their attacker.(1/3) pic.twitter.com/fRlrLabqK0
— Wrongful Conviction (@WrongConviction) November 10, 2021
