Anne Johnson Davis (died July 29, 2010) was an American author and public speaker who in 2008 published ''Hell Minus One'', a

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based on the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autob ...

in which she claimed to have been a childhood victim of

Satanic ritual abuse The Satanic panic is a moral panic consisting of over 12,000 unsubstantiated cases of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA, sometimes known as ritual abuse, ritualistic abuse, organized abuse, or sadistic ritual abuse) starting in North America in the 19 ...

(SRA). In the book, Davis further claimed that her allegations of abuse were corroborated through a confession by her mother and stepfather made to Lt. Detective Matt Jacobson of the Utah Attorney General's office.

History

In her memoir, Davis discusses her alleged abuse from the ages of 3 to 17, including

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...

, and being forced to hurt her siblings in the context of satanic rituals, and her departure from her home at age 17. Davis made the allegations public in 1995 under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Rachel Hopkins. At the time an investigation was underway by the Utah Attorney General's office into

(SRA). According to Davis, her memories of abuse began surfacing in 1993. In 2008, Transcript Bulletin Publishing published Davis' memoir, ''Hell Minus One''.

Confessions

In 1995, under the name Rachel Hopkins, Davis states she was abused after a report was released by the Utah Attorney General's office that downplayed the existence of ritual abuse. As evidence, Davis provided a photo showing herself as a child with bruises, and also claimed her siblings corroborated her story. In addition, Davis provided a confession by her mother and stepfather regarding the abuse to detectives in the Attorney General's Office. Her parents also confessed to two investigators from the office, as well as to the leaders of the church they attended. In her book, Davis states that her parents were

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...

by the

LDS Church The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded during ...

and sold their home to pay for her therapy.

False Memory Syndrome

The

False Memory Syndrome Foundation The False Memory Syndrome Foundation (FMSF) was a nonprofit organization founded in 1992 and dissolved in late 2019. The FMSF was created by Pamela and Peter Freyd, after their adult daughter Jennifer Freyd accused her father of child sexual abu ...

has reviewed the book; Davis blamed proponents of

false memory syndrome In psychology, false memory syndrome (FMS) was a proposed "pattern of beliefs and behaviors" in which a person's identity and relationships are affected by false memories of psychological trauma, recollections which are strongly believed by the i ...

for her family not being prosecuted, as well as privacy concerns and the

statute of limitations A statute of limitations, known in civil law systems as a prescriptive period, is a law passed by a legislative body to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. ("Time for commencing proceedings") In ...

for not pressing charges. Davis also noted that without corroborative evidence (beyond the confessions) she would probably still have to prove she did not suffer from false memory syndrome or dissociative identity disorder. The False Memory Syndrome Foundation concludes its review with the

rhetorical question A rhetorical question is a question asked for a purpose other than to obtain information. In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic. A simple example ...

"Is Ann Davis’s story an example of a confirmed case of satanic ritual abuse? We leave it to ''FMSF Newsletter'' readers to decide."Davis, 2008, as cited in

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Anne Johnson American memoirists American women memoirists Satanic ritual abuse hysteria in the United States Year of birth missing 2010 deaths

History

Confessions

False Memory Syndrome

See also

References