Dear Editor: If you have ever been (or still are) in denial about the existence of sexual assault in Ouray County, last week’s front page article, “3 men accused of sex assault on juvenile in Ouray,” has hopefully dispelled any myths. Sadly, sexual violence is alive and well in our rural community. Ouray County Sheriff ’s office reports the following statistics for 2023: two adult sexual assault; four child sexual abuse/ assault; 19 intimate partner violence (formerly domestic violence.) Regardless of whether perpetrators are found guilty by the courts, the fact remains that humans who live, work and play in our county have suffered harm due to unconscionable sexual abuse. Over the past half dozen years, virtually all cases of alleged sexual assault — some highly publicized — have ended without a conviction.