After Lorenna Bobbitt’s husband John sexually assaulted her at their home in Virginia in the summer of 1993, she retaliated by waiting until he was asleep, she decided to fight back. Following the attack, Lorena fled the house in her car and eventually pulled over to the side of the road to call 911 and report the incident, at which time she was arrested. Though salacious, this incident of domestic violence would likely have gone unnoticed by the rest of the American public; however, at the time, debates about domestic violence and marital rape were raging and the Bobbitt case came to serve as an example of the consequences and effects of that violence, for arguments on both sides. As a result, the Bobbitt case became one of the most high-profile criminal cases in the country—and then it became a national joke.

References

Anolik, Lili. 2018. "Lorena Bobbitt's American Dream." Vanity Fair, June 28.

Chozick, Amy. 2019. "You know the Lorena Bobbitt story. But not all of it." New York Times Magazine, January 30.

Effron, Lauren, and Sean Dooley. 2019. John Bobbitt speaks out 25 years after wife infamously cut off his penis. January 4. Accessed July 10, 2026. https://abcnews.com/US/john-bobbitt-speaks-25-years-wife-infamously-cut/story?id=60023049.

Labton, Stephen. 1993. "Husband acquitted of assault in mutilation case." New York Times, November 11: 18.

Lentz, Kelsey. 2025. "Where Is Lorena Bobbitt Now? All About Her Life 32 Years After She Cut Her Husband's Genitals Off." People Magazine, June 23.

New York Times. 1993. "Battle of the sexes joined in case of mutilation." New York Times, November 8: 16.

—. 1993. "Husband tells court of sexual mutilation by wife." New York Times, November 10: 20.

—. 1993. "Tearful woman tells jury why she cut off her husband's penis." New York Times, November 9: B8.

—. 1993. "Tearful woman tells jury why she cut off her husband's penis." New York Times, November 9: B8.

News, CBS. 2008. Lorena Bobbitt, 15 years later. June 25. Accessed July 14, 2026. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lorena-bobbitt-15-years-later/.

Potomac News. 1993. "Maimed man ponders TV offers for his story." Potomac News, July 11: 1.

Silman, Anna. 2019. "The Bobbitt penis doctor on the surgery he'll never forget." The Cut, February 13.

Tannenbaum, Denyse. 1993. "No rape, mutilated man says." Potomac News, July 13: 1.

Valle, Ana. 1994. "Bobbitt trial to resume Tuesday after emotional Friday." Potomac News, January 16: 8.

—. 1994. "Experts disagree on state of mind." Potomac News, January 19: 1.

Williams, Marcia. 1993. "Ebert needs to watch his words carefully." Potomac News, December 3: 10.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

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