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Woman shares story of decades of sexual abuse from mom's boyfriend. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison

She said the regular things kids did when they were little, "All those things were taken from me."

BOISE, Idaho — A man will spend two decades behind bars for taking a child across state lines with the intention to sexually abuse her.

63-year-old Chris Hamburg will spend 20 years in federal prison convicted of two counts of transportation of a minor.

"He took us on the run. So, we were just bouncing town to town, house to house across from one side of Washington and to Idaho into Utah,” said Rachel Parisho, one of the Hamburg’s victims. “I think part of Montana at one point."

This all started in 1990 when Hamburg began dating Parisho’s mother and moved into the family's home in Washington state.

"Picture any 10-year-old in your life and what they're doing right now, none of those things were mine,” Perisho said. “I didn't have school assemblies; I didn't have parent teacher meetings; I didn't go to a friend's house for sleepovers; I didn't have secret crushes and pass notes to the boy next to me; I didn't have any of that. All those things were taken from me."

Perisho, her mother and brother went through physical, emotional, and sexual abuse for 20 years.

"He used to padlock my brother in this room and not let them out to shower, bathe or go to the bathroom, then make fun of them for being dirty," Perisho said.

Perisho said she was eight or nine when this happened and at the young age of 11 she became pregnant with Hamburg’s child.

"I went from being a little kid to being a mom at 12, that's all I've known," Perisho said.

A short time later at age 13, she was pregnant again.

Perisho's brother managed to escape, but her and her two sons continued to live locked away for about 15 more years until they finally got away too.

"Getting away was amazing because me we had real life for the first time,” Perisho said. “My sons were not allowed to attend school, so I had helped homeschool them from my 12-year-old knowledge and got them to graduation on time."

That transition was not easy for Perisho’s kids because all they knew was the inside of a home.

"My son came to me one time he was like, I don't know what to do when the bell rings, I look around and people laugh,"  Perisho said. "I don't know what to do, he said they've been doing this since they were kids. I don't know what it means when the bell rings. Do I go to a different class? Do I stand up and go to the hallway? Do I follow the teacher? Do I go?”

Parisho said she had been trying to get justice for what Hamburg had done to her family and social media was the key.

“My brother has this Facebook page, Sightings of Chris Hamburg,” she said. “They arrested him because the tip my brother had got through his Facebook page, which I thought was pretty awesome."

Perisho said, she knows she's been through a lot, but she hopes her story inspires others in a similar situation to speak up and find help.

"Tell a friend, tell somebody you trust, write a note, put it down somewhere, let somebody else find it and wonder who it is, eventually, it'll come back to you," she said.

Beatrice Black, the CEO of the Women's and Children Alliance says talking to someone and finding help is the best advice to give to someone suffering any type of abuse.

"Don't be afraid to call," Black said. “At least talking to someone to validate or help you better understand what may or may not be a destructive or abusive relationship."

For Perisho that's what led to her abuser getting caught and giving her the justice, she was looking for.

"Some call it justice, even poetic justice, but I call it peace knowing that he'll never breathe free again, knowing he’ll have to ask permission to go to the bathroom, just like my brother did,” Perisho said. “Know, he’ll have to ask permission to step out those doors just like we did. Know he’s going to be told no, just like we were."

The WCA said they have a number you can reach out to for help and that's (208) 343-7025. Black says they offer several resources including a shelter with childcare, as well as attorneys, financial help and job skills training.

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