E56: Antiguan Justice | Derrick Hurley on Fighting for Justice and Redefining a Father’s Role – Real Men, Real Conversations

Send us Fan MailIn this week’s episode of Aspire, hosts Alex Prout and Gabriel Viscogliosi are joined by special guest Derrick Hurley, a father of three, retired retail technology executive, and author of Antiguan Justice: A Father’s Fight. Derrick shares the story of his eldest daughter, who while studying in Antigua, was drugged and raped by an off-duty UK police officer.Derrick talks about the moment he and his wife first learned what had happened, and how he moved from a rush of rage and a desire for revenge into a posture of calm, unconditional support. He describes what it meant to tell his daughter, “You focus on school and healing, I’ll take care of justice,” and how that promise turned into a four-year battle through two countries’ legal systems, including an unprecedented and historic extradition.The conversation explores what it looks like for fathers and caregivers to respond to disclosure in a truly trauma-informed way. Providing unconditional support, rejecting victim-blaming, and centering their daughters' needs over their own anger, are similarities that Alex and Derrick, both fathers of survivors, share. Derrick, Alex, and Gabriel discuss the toll that prolonged legal processes take on families, and what changed when they began to seek therapy, community, and advocacy as part of their healing.They also zoom out to examine the broader systems that enable sexual violence to flourish: low rates of reporting and conviction, cultural myths about “staying safe,” and the ways law enforcement, embassies, and legal frameworks can either retraumatize survivors or protect them, sometimes even both. Drawing from Derrick's experience working with police and officials in Antigua and the UK, the hosts ask what true accountability should look like, and how survivor-centered reforms could transform outcomes for others.Justice, they emphasize, is more than a verdict: it’s the daily work of showing up, listening, pushing systems to do better, and choosing not to let silence and denial have the last word. By sharing his family's story, Derrick offers a powerful example of how a battle for justice can ripple outward into changes in law, practice, and public conversation, and how even in the aftermath of profound harm, families can help build a world where survivors everywhere find justice.To learn more about Derrick Hurley and his book, please visit https://derrick-hurley.com/product/antiguan-justice/Support the showAspire is produced by BenHudakProductions.com