Sarah Hyland shares her story of being sexually assaulted by high school friend

‘I hoped it was a dream but my ripped tights in the morning proved otherwise’

Sarah Hyland has shared how she was sexually assaulted by a friend at a New Year’s Eve party, revealing that she didn’t think she’d be believed if she came forward.

The Modern Family actor detailed the alleged incident while tweeting her support for Dr Christine Ford, who yesterday provided testimony claiming that she’d been sexually assaulted by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh when they were teenagers.

Using the widely spread ‘Why I Didn’t Report’ hashtag, Hyland explained that the assault had occurred while she was in her last year of high school.

“He was a friend. It was New Year’s Eve my senior year of high school,” she wrote.

“Everyone was drunk. He broke into the bathroom I was in.

“I hoped it was a dream but my ripped tights in the morning proved otherwise.”

Hyland feared the way in which people would react if she spoke openly about what had happened, which is why she didn’t report it at the time.

“I thought no one would believe me,” she wrote. “I didn’t want to be called dramatic.

“After all I didn’t say no. Shock can do that to a person.”

Many people have praised the actor for the bravery that she’s demonstrated by sharing her experience.

“Thank you for sharing your story Sarah. I am so sorry for what you went through,” one person tweeted.

“I also didn’t think people would believe me because I also didn’t say no… I was frozen in fear.”

“I just wanted to say thank you for being so brave and speaking up,” another person wrote.

“I absolutely adore you and the admiration just grows each day. You’re such an amazing warrior of a woman.”

A number of celebrities have used the ‘Why I Didn’t Report’ hashtag to explain why they didn’t report being sexually assaulted, including Mira Sorvino, Ashley Judd and Cara Delevingne.

In Delevingne’s case, she says that she worried about how reporting her attacker would affect his life, despite the way in which his actions negatively impacted hers.

“Because I felt ashamed of what happened and didn’t want to publicly ruin someone’s life, even though they privately ruined mine #WhyIDidntReport,” she tweeted.