Naman Shrestha
In 2014, the University of Minnesota fresher Abby Honold was brutally raped by a Sigma Phi Epsilon brother named Daniel Drill-Mellum in his house. Although the authorities investigated the case, they could not gather enough evidence against him. It was only after Abby’s determined efforts to bring the culprit down that Daniel was brought to justice. In the episode titled ‘Rape Culture’ of A&E’s ‘Houses of Horror: Secrets of College Greek Life,’ the entire case is explored in detail, focusing on the survivor and her fight against injustice.
Abby Honold Played a Vital Role in Bringing Her Attacker to Justice
Abby Honold had a loving childhood in Bloomington, Minnesota, thanks to the constant support of her parents. Since she was the oldest sibling out of the six, she tried to lead by example and become an inspiration to her siblings. With dreams of becoming a schoolteacher, she moved into the dorms at the University of Minnesota after graduating from high school with flying colors. Not long after joining the University, Abby was introduced to 22-year-old Daniel Drill-Mellum, a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon, by a friend at a football tailgate party in November 2014.
When Daniel asked Abby to come to his place — which was just across the street — to get some more alcohol, she agreed and believed she had no reason to fear as she was told by a mutual friend that he was gay. However, as soon as they were inside his apartment, Daniel turned violent and forced himself onto her. Despite her asking him to stop, he continued attacking and sexually assaulting her. After he finally let her go, Abby immediately called 911 and reported the incident to the police. The authorities took him into custody and interrogated him at the station, where he claimed the sex was consensual.
Meanwhile, Abby went to the hospital for a medical examination. Upon getting back the results, the nurse described her injuries as some of the worst she had seen in her career. According to Abby, the investigator responsible for her case treated her poorly. She said she was having trouble remembering details of the rape, which led her to provide incomplete information to the authorities. On the other hand, the nurse helped her to remember the events of the night clearly by asking her what she smelled and tasted and allowing her to talk without interrupting her. During a phone call with one of the frat brothers, Abby said she was manipulated to say “yes” when he asked her if the sex was consensual by pronouncing it unclearly, making it sound like “actual sex.”
The frat brothers used this recording to release Daniel from prison. However, Abby kept fighting to get justice for herself and encouraged other potential survivors of Daniel to come forward and raise their voices against him. When another agency reopened the case, Daniel Drill-Mellum was arrested on December 24, 2015, for sexual assault. He was brought to justice for the rape of Abby Honold and another survivor he sexually assaulted a week prior to Abby. In light of her ordeal, Abby Honold proposed the Abby Honold Act, which was meant to help provide training and funds to teach the investigators ways to interview rape survivors without causing further trauma to them. Finally, on March 15, 2022, the Abby Honold Act was signed into law as part of a $1.5 trillion budget bill.
Abby Honold is an Executive Director at Consent Education MN
While Abby Honold fought against sexual assault, she did not stop focusing on her professional career. To begin with, she was an intern for about four months at Willow Cottage Early Learning Centre, after which she bagged a teaching gig at KinderCare, her dream job since childhood. Meanwhile, she also used to own Abby Honold Photography until July 2017. After that, Abby worked at KeliComm Headshots as the Studio Manager.
Since February 2018, she has been associated with Consent Education MN. She started from the Outreach position and climbed her way to become the Executive Director. Having spoken in public spaces and interviews over the years, she is also an advocate, consultant, and speaker. In June 2022, Abby had the final press conference on the Abby Honold Act, celebrating her hard work and dedication to bring the necessary changes to the law.
Abby Honold Continues to Fight Against Sexual Predators With the Support of Her Husband
In May 2017, Abby Honold and Duke Merickel tied the knot in the graceful presence of their families, friends and other loved ones. Duke is employed at Venture Solutions as a Vice President of Sales and has been a Board Member of Big Brothers Big Sisters Twin Cities since May 2022. In September 2019, Abby completed a full year of sobriety and shared the news on social media, writing, “Some exciting personal news: I am officially 365 days sober. I honestly can hardly believe it and I’m just feeling hella proud of myself today.” A year later, sometime before the convicted rapist Daniel Drill-Mellum was released from prison, Abby Honold took to social media again and shared her disappointment.
Furthermore, in late 2023, when the news of Daniel’s sex offender level getting lowered hit the headlines, Duke showed his support for Abby by resharing her tweets on his LinkedIn account. He wrote, “This has been an incredibly tough week for my family. As some of you may know, my wife Abby has fought tirelessly to help sexual assault survivors the past 9 years. Unfortunately this is another step in the wrong direction that she is now having to deal with. If this upsets you as much as it does me, I encourage you to speak up and help advocate for change to better protect survivors in the future.” Having built a loving home together in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Abby and Duke have been each other’s rocks through the toughest of times.
Read More: Daniel Drill-Mellum: What Happened to the Sex Offender?
