Twenty-five years after their names became synonymous with a shocking crime that captivated the world, John Bobbitt opens up to share his perspective on the infamous incident involving his then-wife, Lorena Bobbitt. In a new interview, John seeks to provide a comprehensive account of the events that transpired, aiming for public understanding beyond the sensational headlines that dominated the 1990s. The case of John And Lorena Bobbitt remains a stark reminder of the complexities of relationships, domestic disputes, and the insatiable appetite of media frenzy.
In the summer of 1993, the Bobbitts were catapulted into the global spotlight when Lorena Bobbitt severed her husband John’s penis with a kitchen knife. Overnight, their private turmoil became a public spectacle. American tabloids, late-night talk shows, and evening news broadcasts relentlessly covered their story, turning the intimate details of their troubled marriage into national entertainment. Sandwiched between the high-profile trials of the Menendez brothers and O.J. Simpson, the Bobbitt saga became a defining moment in America’s fascination with sensational crime and pop culture.
“You know, I want people to understand the story, the whole story.” – John Bobbitt told ABC News.
John Bobbitt, in his recent interview with ABC News, emphasizes his desire for people to grasp the full narrative behind the headlines. While Lorena Bobbitt, now known as Lorena Gallo, extensively shared her side of the story in the immediate aftermath of the incident, she has declined to comment on recent requests for her perspective. This article delves into the details of the John and Lorena Bobbitt case, drawing from available reports and interviews to provide a comprehensive overview for an English-speaking audience seeking to understand the complexities of this highly publicized event.
From Chance Encounter to Marital Discord
John Bobbitt’s early life began in Niagara Falls, New York. At the age of three, he and his brothers were raised by their aunt and uncle. He describes a childhood filled with both love and conflict, positioning himself as the family peacemaker. Later, as a young man in the Marines, Bobbitt’s life took a turn when he met Lorena Gallo at a Marine Corps officers’ ball in 1988.
“I saw her over there,” John Bobbitt recounts, “And she looks shy and innocent, and I went over there and asked her to dance.” Lorena, who had come from Ecuador and Venezuela, was in the United States on a student visa. According to Lorena’s attorney, Blair Howard, her initial impression of John was that of “an absolute gentleman.”
Their relationship progressed, but John recalls feeling pressured into marriage as Lorena’s visa was nearing expiration. “Had to bite the bullet, I guess, get married,” he stated. However, Lorena’s account from a 1993 interview with ABC News differs, with her stating that John proposed to her without mentioning visa concerns.
They married in a modest ceremony. John, in his Marine uniform, and Lorena, in a white wedding gown. “I was happy,” Bobbitt reflected on his wedding day, though when asked if he loved her, he responded with a hesitant, “Well, I thought I did.”
John Wayne Bobbitt points toward photographers as he arrives at the Prince William County Courthouse in Manassas on Jan. 18, 1994, for the fifth day of his wife Lorena's trial for malicious wounding.
The initial harmony soon faded as the realities of married life set in. The couple settled in Manassas, Virginia. By 1991, John was discharged from the Marines and struggled to maintain stable employment. Lorena became the primary earner, working as a nanny and then as a manicurist. Her employer from that time, Janna Bisutti, noted in a 1993 interview that Lorena “loved him and she wanted her marriage to work.”
Financial strain and differing expectations began to erode their relationship. John described Lorena’s desire for a more luxurious lifestyle, which he felt they couldn’t afford, leading to frequent arguments. Lorena’s attorney painted a different picture, stating that while John was not abusive during their courtship, his behavior changed after marriage.
Escalating Conflict and Domestic Turmoil
In 1993, Lorena revealed in an interview that physical abuse began just a month into their marriage. She described escalating incidents of violence, including punches and, on one occasion, choking. John denies these accusations of abuse, claiming that Lorena was the aggressor and that he only acted in self-defense to “subdue or restrain her.”
He characterized Lorena as intensely jealous and possessive, claiming she would become violent if he interacted with other women. “She was just a very jealous person… very possessive. Did not want anybody around me. I think she was always afraid someone was going to take me away from her. Like, I was her prize.”
Lorena, who was Catholic, stated that her religious beliefs against divorce and her desire to make the marriage work kept her from leaving. The police were called to their residence multiple times due to domestic disputes. Sergeant Kim Chinn from the Prince William County Police Department confirmed that officers responded to their apartment “about half a dozen times.” John was once arrested and charged with assault and battery, while Lorena was cross-warranted with the same charge. Ultimately, both charges were dismissed.
Adding to the complexity, Lorena admitted to shoplifting and stealing from her employer, Bisutti. John pointed to these incidents as further evidence of Lorena’s flawed character.
When Lorena became pregnant, she stated she was initially happy, but John allegedly told her she wasn’t fit to be a mother, leading her to have an abortion. John’s recollection is that they “weren’t ready anyway” and that he suggested they wait, a decision Lorena was unhappy with.
Lorena also alleged that John repeatedly forced her into unwanted sexual acts and raped her throughout their marriage. She described these instances as happening “frequently,” often following physical altercations. “It was every time he will hit me, he will just try to force me into the sex again. It will be in the floor. He just trapped me. I feel trapped.” John vehemently denies these rape allegations.
Lorena Bobbitt arriving at court, facing charges for malicious wounding. The trial became a focal point for discussions on domestic violence.
Lorena sought a protective order against John but did not complete the process. By this time, John claims he had already asked Lorena for a divorce. He stated that the divorce request deeply affected Lorena, “It hit her like a ton of bricks. She was crying and she was begging.”
The Fateful Night and Its Aftermath
On June 22, 1993, as the couple was navigating the separation, John invited a friend, Robert Johnston, to stay with them. That night, John and Robert went out, consuming alcohol. Upon returning home in the early hours of June 23rd, Lorena claimed John’s loud arrival woke her.
Lorena’s attorney stated that she had been reading literature on rape that night. According to Lorena, John entered the bedroom intoxicated, forced himself upon her, and raped her. John’s version of events is drastically different. He claims Lorena was awake when he came home, and while he recalls “some petting,” he denies sexual intercourse and asserts he was too tired to respond to her advances. He maintains he did not rape her.
Following this alleged rape, Lorena went to the kitchen, where she saw a knife. In her 1993 interview, she described a flood of emotions and memories of abuse. “Things like, from the very first day he hit me. Things about the abortion… things that …when he was torturing me, when he was beating me up. When he has forced sex with me, everything, it just came so fast.”
“I pick up the knife and I … I went back to the bedroom. I took the sheets off and I cut him. Everything went just fast.” – Lorena Bobbitt in a 1993 interview.
John claims he was asleep when Lorena attacked him. “I sprung up and I was bleeding, I was applying pressure, then immediately I thought it was something out of a horror movie,” he recounted. “A nightmare… turned into reality.” He described feeling “horrified. Terrified,” believing he was going to die.
Lorena fled their apartment with the knife and John’s severed penis. She drove away, eventually throwing the organ out of the car window in a state of shock and distress. She then went to her friend Bisutti’s house, where she broke down, and the police were called.
Meanwhile, John instructed his friend Johnston to take him to the hospital. Johnston, upon seeing the extent of the injury, reacted with panic. At the hospital, the emergency room doctor initially examined John’s wrist, mistaking the source of the blood. It was only when John pointed downwards that the doctor realized the horrific nature of the injury.
The knife used by Lorena Bobbitt is displayed as evidence during her trial.
Police located the severed penis in a field and rushed it to the hospital on ice, contained in a brown paper hot dog bag. Surgeons Dr. David Berman, a plastic surgeon, and Dr. James Sehn, a urologist, undertook the complex nine-hour reattachment surgery. Dr. Berman emphasized the critical nature of the procedure, stating, “The biggest concern I had is, simply, that it had to work. There was no second chance.” The surgery was successful, restoring function to John’s penis. Dr. Berman described it as “the most interesting and dramatic case I’ve ever done in my life.”
Separate Trials and Public Spectacle
Lorena Bobbitt was arrested and charged with malicious wounding, facing up to 20 years in prison. She pleaded not guilty by reason of temporary insanity. Her case garnered significant public support, with many viewing her as a victim of abuse who had reacted under extreme duress. The case thrust domestic violence back into the national spotlight.
John Bobbitt was also arrested, charged with marital sexual assault based on Lorena’s accusations. He pleaded not guilty and was acquitted in November 1993. While John’s trial received less media attention due to restrictions on cameras in sexual assault cases, Lorena’s trial became a media circus, broadcast nationwide.
During Lorena’s trial, John appeared uncomfortable and struggled to articulate his responses when questioned about domestic abuse allegations. Lorena’s defense team argued that she was a battered woman who had acted due to an “irresistible impulse,” claiming she did not remember the act of cutting.
Witnesses testified to seeing John abuse Lorena and observing bruises on her. The prosecution argued Lorena’s motive was to prevent the divorce, fearing the loss of her envisioned life in America. John believed Lorena was acting out of deep emotional hurt and a desire for retaliation.
John Bobbitt waits while Lorena Bobbitt and her attorney talk with the judge during her trial.
On January 22, 1994, the jury found Lorena Bobbitt not guilty by reason of temporary insanity. She was ordered to undergo a five-week evaluation at a mental hospital. John expressed shock at the verdict, questioning how she could “get away with it.”
After her release, Lorena stated in a second ABC News interview that both she and John were “victims of a tragic situation.” John, however, rejects this view, asserting, “I don’t believe she was a victim. No. She was just greedy, selfish and she was stubborn.”
Life After the Media Storm
In the aftermath of his trial, John Bobbitt engaged in a 40-city media tour, including appearances on “The Howard Stern Show” and even starring in an adult film directed by Ron Jeremy. The surgeons who reattached his penis had mixed reactions to his foray into adult entertainment. Dr. Sehn quipped, “It’s not often our surgical work is displayed in that fashion,” while Dr. Berman, who also watched the film, acknowledged it “gives credibility to the fact that it does work, and it worked very well.”
Following his brief stint in adult films, John held various jobs and faced further legal troubles, including domestic battery charges from other women, which he denies. He attributes his post-case difficulties to poor choices in relationships, stating he attracted “all the wrong people.”
Lorena returned to a more private life, working as a manicurist and becoming an advocate for domestic violence survivors. In 2007, she established a foundation to support victims of domestic abuse.
The Bobbitts officially divorced in 1995. John Bobbitt currently resides in Las Vegas and pursues interests like treasure hunting. He recalls seeing Lorena once since her trial, during a 2009 TV appearance where he admitted to still having feelings for her at the time. Today, he says he loved “the woman she was” but has moved on.
John Wayne Bobbitt during his exclusive interview with "20/20," reflecting on the events of the past 25 years.
The story of John and Lorena Bobbitt remains a complex and cautionary tale. It highlights the devastating consequences of domestic violence, the sensationalism of media coverage, and the enduring impact of a single, shocking act on the lives of those involved. John Bobbitt’s recent interview underscores his ongoing desire for understanding and a complete portrayal of the events that forever changed his life and etched his and Lorena’s names into public consciousness.
