was so shocked, I just didn't say anything, and I think that's typical," she said. "Juries struggle with this: 'Why didn't you come forward sooner? Why didn't you report the incident?' There's so much shame and stigma on the survivor, your reaction is to try to deal with it privately."

Barnard became an international star after he transplanted the heart of a young car crash victim into the chest of a 55-year-old businessman in Cape Town, South Africa. The obituary published in the Los Angeles Times said Barnard's "surgical successes were ultimately overshadowed by his playboy celebrity" and described his three marriages and "notorious trysts" with Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida and others. According to his autobiography, he was "consumed and intoxicated" by fame.

One of Barnard's grandchildren, who runs anon-profit foundation named for him in South Africa, didn't immediately respond to an email request for comment. McCloskey said Thursday he had no recollection of the assault alleged by Kuster and she never talked to him about it.

Since returning to Washington as a congresswoman, Kuster has co-sponsored legislation to codify rights for sexual assault survivors and pushed for an amendment in the National Defence Authorization Act to address the growing problem of sexual assault in the military. In New Hampshire, she has hosted several forums on college campuses to discuss the issue. She said her decision to tell her story is a continuation of those efforts.

"This moment in time gives us a chance to broaden the dialogue and advocate for a change in the environment, to say definitively,