“Bachelorette” star Katie Thurston admits she was raped

The “Bachelorette,” who starred in season 17 of the show, announced the news in an Instagram post on Friday, sharing parts of her story and providing a list of resources for others who have experienced sexual assault and rape.

Thurston says she’s not ready to go into details yet, but explains she called 911 to report the incident … and an officer took her for a forensic exam for sexual assault.

Katie says she felt like a “defenseless child” during the exam… and thanks the nurse and advocate for helping her through the exam.

Thurston says the test took four months to complete, during which time she consulted with a therapist and read more about how to conduct conversations with detectives investigating her claims.

KT says she gave everything to investigators – text messages, phone records, DNA, videos and her own body – and yet somehow her pursuit of justice was stopped. She doesn’t explain what she means by that.

The reality star says this isn’t just a loss for her… it’s “another loss in a broken system. Change happens through failure and the justice system failed me. And continues to fail thousands every day.”

She ends her post with an encouraging message to her fans: She tells them that they are valuable and strong – and, most importantly, that she believes in them.

Katie ended with Blake Moynes in her season of “The Bachelorette,” although the two split in 2021. She then dated John Hershey who also appeared on her season before they split up in 2022.