Warning: The following article discusses domest!c v!olence and r*pe, which some readers may find distressing.
In 1993, John Bobbitt experienced every man’s worst nightmare when he awoke to find his pen!s had been severed. This incident became infamous as one of the most notor!ous “he said, she said” cases in American history, involving a young couple and a shocking night that captivated the media.
John and Lorena Bobbitt (née Gallo) met at a Marine Corps officers’ ball in 1988 and quickly formed a connection. They married the following year, with John claiming it was due to pressure from Lorena and her mother because of her expiring visa, while Lorena insisted he proposed willingly.
The couple moved to Virginia in 1991 after John left the Marines, and their relationship became complicated. John struggled to secure full-time employment, while Lorena worked as a nanny and later as a manicurist at a local beauty salon. She was determined to make the marriage work, recounts salon owner Janna Bisutti to ABC News.
In 1993, during an ABC News interview, Lorena claimed that John first hit her just a month into their marriage, while John described her as volatile and claimed to be “subduing” her.
After Lorena became pregnant, John suggested delaying having a child, which led Lorena to have an abortion. Their arguments worsened, with police responding to domest!c v!olence complaints several times. Lorena accused John of r*pe and v!olence, accusations he denied.
John sought a divorce at age 26, while Lorena, 24, reportedly resisted the idea. The situation came to a head on June 22, 1993, when their friend Robert Johnston stayed over. After a night of drinking, Lorena alleged John r*ped her, a claim he denied.
Later that night, Lorena allegedly acted on memories of abvse and grabbed a knofe, severing John’s penis while he slept. He awoke in shock and described the experience as a “nightmare turned reality.”
Lorena fled with the knife and John’s severed organ, later discarding the latter before contacting the police. John was taken to the hospital, where Dr. David Berman successfully reattached his penis after it was recovered by law enforcement.
Lorena was charged with malicious wounding and pleaded not guilty by reason of temporary insanity, while John faced charges of marital s*xual assault, also pleading not guilty.
Each faced separate trials, with Lorena’s widely televised. John was acquitted in November 1993 and testified at Lorena’s trial, struggling with questions about domest!c abuse. On January 22, 1994, Lorena was found not guilty due to temporary insanity and was mandated to spend five weeks in a mental hospital.
Reflecting on the events, Lorena expressed that they were both victims of a trag!c situation, a sentiment John rejected, attributing her actions to greed, selfishness, and stubbornness.