Carroll Gilligan

Disclaimer: While place descriptions and news events may coincide with the real world, all characters and the plot are fictional.
==Biography==
===Early Years===
Carroll's pronouns are 'they/them'. Neither 'he' or 'she' has felt right to them since they were a child.
Carroll has told Turk of a psychological exercise used with a child who have 'gender confusion'. The child is given a deck of pictures to sort into 3 piles - girls, boys, and 'dogs'. Once the child masters that, their own pictures are added to the deck. Carroll put their pictures in the 'dog' pile. When scolded, they put their photos in any pile randomly.
===Education===
Carroll Gilligan is a graduate of Reed College.
===Independent Journalist===
Carroll is an independent journalist, who tweets live from events. 
They provide vivid descriptions, and are good at analysis. Cage Washington says they have "an eye for the shot, and a sense of where they need to be to get the good shots". Emily Andersen thinks Carroll doesn't get much wrong as a witness to events.
After reading Carroll's posts, Will Bristol is impressed by the quantity and quality of their work. Carroll is followed by some big names in journalism, and is obviously respected as an on-the-ground source for the Portland protests. They seem fearless in getting the images and in streaming live.
==== Book 2: Choose ====
In June 2020, Carroll was abducted by men claiming to be 'federal agents' and taken by van to an undisclosed location, and questioned. They were beaten and tortured then dumped outside an emergency room 24 hours later. No charges were pressed. Carroll's mother, Rep. Sarah Gilligan, called for an investigation, but the Portland Police Bureau denied they were involved and refused to investigate.
Since then, Carroll has had some additional mental health issues.
Late on Monday afternoon, October 12, 2020, Carroll joins a handful of independent journalists outside the Multnomah County Justice Center. Cage sees them and asks if they are doing OK, and reminds them of the Crow's Nest sanctuary. 
Later that night, Turk, Jake and The Witch carry Carroll to EWN. Carroll is semi-conscious with red marks rimming their eyes. Turk tells Cage that they were heading home when a van pulled up and men grabbed Jake. The group of independents grabbed back, and then another truck with a bunch of white men pulled up and beat them. One of the men in the first van pulled down Carroll's COVID mask, used pepper spray on their face, then pulled the mask back up to lock it in. Jake thinks the men in the van were law enforcement, Turk says the truck however was 'pure white boy': muffler, Confederate flag decals, Trump logos, Bud Light in cans. As they go up to the Crow's Nest in the elevator, Turk tells Cage that their group was targeted. Jake was grabbed as he was closest, but when the truck arrived, they dropped Jake and reached for Carroll. Carroll has a flashback when Cage offers to help, but manages to showers with Turk's help before returning upstairs. Cage asks Carroll to stay until he returns the next afternoon.
Early Tuesday afternoon, October 13, 2020, Sarah King goes up to the Crow's Nest. She was teargassed in Afghanistan and has PTSD episodes herself, so empathizes. Carroll says they have nightmares during the day, even while awake, and it makes it hard to distinguish nightmare from reality. Turk assures Carroll that the abduction in June did happen, and asks if the men the previous night said anything to Carroll? Carroll becomes hysterical saying "No! No! I won't talk! I said I won't! I won'1!" Sarah assures Carroll they didn't, and they won't, that what is happening now is real, their friend Turk is there, and Sarah would like to be a friend too. With more assurance from Turk, Carroll allows Sarah to examine their mouth, throat, and eyes, and she doesn't find any permanent damage. Carroll says they feel safe at EWN as "Cage makes it safe". Sarah goes back down in the elevator alone, troubled that Carroll's outburst and the implication that Carroll was tortured while in police custody.
Later that afternoon, Sarah tell Cage and Emily that during Carroll's 'missing' 24hrs in June, they were tortured. That night Carroll is back reporting on the downtown protests.
Miguel Garcia helps Turk and Carroll leave the protests on Thursday evening, and hides with them at Keller Fountain park. Miguel calls out as Cage passes by to let him know the EWN team are safely headed back, and that he has Turk and Carroll hidden. Carroll is hysterical, screaming 'won't talk' - Turk can't calm them. Turk sees Cage approach, and tells Carroll that Cage has come to take care of them. Cage helps Turk get Carroll up, and asks Turk if they can walk to EWN. Turk says he's injured and will be slow, but tells them to go on ahead. When Ryan arrives in his Prius, Miguel walks back to EWN. Ryan says the roads are blocked, so they have to go the long way around. Carroll tells Cage they saw the van again, it had the same plates. When they arrive at EWN, Miguel and Sarah are already in the Crow's Nest waiting for them. Sarah helps Turk get Carroll settled. Turk goes down to the newsroom until the news broadcast ends, then returns to the Crow's Nest to check on Carroll and Sarah.
Will interviews Carroll about what happened, and why they thought it was the same van. Carroll explains about the plate. Both Turk and Carroll remember more details as Will gently prods them with questions. Will then asks Carroll about what happened in June. Turk asks if he can tell what he saw first. Carroll says they'd like to hear it, they've never really talked about it. Turk says the police had sprayed the crowds with teargas. Turk, Carroll, Jake and a couple of others had run, heading for Keller Fountain park; vans with no identification were chasing protesters; men would jump out and demand they stop but show no ID. The men were dressed like federal agents, but white militia were imitating the feds. The men grabbed a couple of protestors including Carroll. Turk had called an attorney to bail Carroll out, but forty minutes later, the lawyer called back to say Carroll was not at the courthouse, there was no record of arrest, no incident report. The following day, Carroll was dumped outside the emergency room with lots of bruising, a rope burn around the neck, and a concussion. Carroll says 'Wouldn't talk, can't talk, told them my name, who I was, nothing else, nothing more to say.' Will asks Carroll who they told them they were. Carroll says they're no one, they're 'Carroll Gilligan, independent journalist, find me @ cgilligan for all the latest news coming from downtown Portland'. The men didn't care about Carroll, but their mother scares them. Will asks who Carroll's mother is? Carroll says she's a business owner in Gresham, who runs good restaurants. And she's Speaker of the House, Sarah Gilligan. Carroll's mom had said that if Carroll was in trouble and their press card ignored to give her name to call, to post bail etc. Sarah Gilligan has been speaking out about police brutality, and the men who captured Carroll wanted to know what her plans were, but Carroll didn't know. Carroll talks to their mom about eating better, not politics. Carroll doesn't think the men knew who Carroll was when they were grabbed, it scared them, they called someone and there was an argument. Carroll starts to hyperventilate, and Sarah reminds them it's a memory, Carroll is safe with friends now. Miguel comes up and gets Cage and Will. Sarah stays with Turk and Carroll.
Around midnight, Turk checks his phone and says EWN are streaming their security camera footage out over the public access channel. Jake had spotted it and is re-sending it over his Twitter feed. It's trending, and not just in Oregon either. Carroll has their phone, so they watch Twitter on one phone, and the public access channel on the other. Carroll points to one man, and said that's the one who questioned them. Carroll takes a screenshot and sends it to their mother, with a link to the feed. When Cage returns to the Crow's Nest to give the all clear, Carroll tells Cage they sent a picture of the man to their mother. The man who held them, who beat them, said he needed to do a full body search, stripped them while they were held, put his fingers inside them and felt their breasts. He told Carroll they weren't real, no one would ever want them, and he could do anything he wanted to them. Cage assures Carroll that they are real, and have many people who care about what happens to them, what they think, and what they feel. The man will be found, and brought to justice. Carroll says they can think they can sleep without nightmares. Cage and Sarah leave, and Turk stays with Carroll.
On Friday evening, Carroll and Turk arrive at EWN to let Emily know that Sarah Gilligan will speak on stage downtown at 9pm. Carroll and Turk leave with J.J., agreeing to look out for each other because no one else is going to. They get a position close to the speakers, and Carroll introduces them to their mother for a sound bite before the speech starts. As Turk and Carroll are tweeting on their phones, Carroll drops their phone and screams. Turk grabs the phone, looks at it and pulls Carroll into a hug. Turk yells they have to get out of there, police are using pepper spray and arresting people. As Rep. Gilligan is being handcuffed, J.J. grabs Turk and Carroll and they head north to the transit mall. They all catch the light rail back to PSU. Turk shows J.J. Carroll's phone. J.J. takes one look at the screen and hands it back, saying he shouldn't see those pics. Carroll is hyperventilating, so J.J. talks them through steadying their breathing. As they walk to EWN Carroll says the men photographed their torture in June, and now want to silence them by threatening to publicly release the photos. The photos show a long, elegant nude body, with small breasts and a slim torso, arms held above the body, out of the picture. There are bruises. Carroll says the PPB is arrogant in arresting their mom, and will regret it as Carroll's mom will use it politically. They've just challenged a different power base - the state legislature - and they won't let it go.
When they arrive at EWN, J.J wants a quote from Carroll about their mom using the arrest and that PPB have picked on the wrong person. Carroll says they've already tweeted it, and EWN can use that for Bianca to read. After Ben leaves, Carroll passes their phone to Emily, and she looks at the six photos that had been DM'd to Carroll's Twitter account. Carroll says they or their mother will send them to the DA, but Carroll wants to make the pictures public. If they're in the public domain, they can't be used as blackmail. Carroll asks if EWN will do it? Emily says it's Ryan's call, and it can be the first order of business at the editor's meeting at 4pm the following day. Carroll and Turk agree to return for the meeting.
Turk and Carroll arrive at 3:30pm for the editor's meeting on Saturday to hear Sarah and Emily talking about Cage. When the meeting starts, Ryan runs through minor agenda items smoothly, then introduces discussion on the protests, the attempted raid, and what happens next. Ryan asks J.J. to team with Carroll and Turk that night in reporting the protests, then introduces the issue of the blackmail photos sent to Carroll. Carroll consents to the photos being shown to those at the meeting. Corey turns around a big screen monitor, and after a break the 6 photos are shown unedited. Carroll says they won't be cowed and blackmailed into silence. After discussion, the decision to publish is unanimous.
Carroll, Turk and J.J. go to the downtown protest that evening, with Cage is roaming separately to them. As it gets close to 10pm, police try to disperse the crowd, laughing while using pepper spray and paint balls on the protesters, and it becomes chaotic. Turk tells Carroll and J.J. to return to EWN, but Carroll wants them to stay together. They argue while J.J. continues to film the chaos. Carroll gets shoved down on one knee, and J.J. pulls them up. Turk yells at J.J. to get Carroll out, they can't let the cops get their hands on Carroll. As Turk is arrested and zip-tied, J.J. helps Carroll who is limping slowly, and is shot with a non-lethal bullet by police. Cage appears and grabs Carroll, telling J.J. to run to the corner. J.J. is in shock, repeating 'He shot me' several times on the walk back to the newsroom. Carroll sympathizes with the pain, saying it will leave a painful bruise but be OK.
When they arrive back at EWN, Cage gets them all in the elevator, stopping it at the second floor and telling J.J. to get cleaned up while he gets Carroll to a place upstairs where they can rest.
The following afternoon, Carroll is present at the EWN editors' meeting, and asks where J.J. is. Ryan reviews what happened to the point a cop shot at J.J., then reveals the cop was J.J.'s father, and that J.J. was at the hospital after attempting suicide. When Prof Cooper arrives, he asks Carroll if they are sure about publishing the photos, as it will be a controversial story. Will asks if Sarah Gilligan can come to EWN, as he thinks he has a name for one of the men. He'd like to interview Carroll and their mom for a follow-up story. The identified man is a former sheriff deputy from Clackamas county, and the van belongs to his sister. Carroll calls her mom, and says she will bring their attorney. After the story goes to air. Carroll goes with Ryan, and Will to the business office's conference room on the ground floor to prepare for the interview.
At 10am on Monday October 19, 2020, Carroll is present as their mother Sarah Gilligan and the District Attorney give a press conference on the steps of the Justice Center, identifying Kevin Blake as one of the men involved in the abduction attempts on Carroll.
*
==Physical Appearance==
Carroll is tall and slim, with pale skin and dark hair, and with small breasts. Turk thinks they look like an androgynous elf from Tolkien.
==Personality==
Turk claims Carroll is the most accident-prone person they know. "If someone throws a rock, Carroll's likely to stroll right in front of it."
The other independent and EWN journalists protect them, as they aren't aware of their own personal safety.
Cage thinks Carroll is brilliant and creative, and a kind person who has many many friends.
* Relationships
===Family===
Carroll's mother, Sarah Gilligan, is a restaurant owner in Gresham - and in 2020 is the Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives.
===Friends===
==== J.J. ====
Monday October 19, 2020 - 9am: Carroll visits J.J. in OHSU while their mom waits in the car. J.J. asks about the broadcast the previous night, and Carroll tells J.J. about it, and that Will had identified one of the men. Carroll can't stay long is they have a press conference to attend, but agrees to come back and see J.J. again.
===== Book 3: Don't Go =====
Carroll has been visiting J.J. daily at OHSU, to sit and tell him the news of the protests and their lawsuit against the cops that abducted them in June 2020. Carroll makes J.J. laugh with descriptions of the independent journalists, and of Carroll's mother, who has been getting headlines for her illegal arrest. On another day, Carroll tells J.J. of their flashbacks and nightmares, and how the blackmail photos actually helped them clear some of the confusion between present and past events. When J.J. leaves OHSU at 11am on Wednesday October 21, Carroll is waiting outside. Cage introduces Carroll to Rev Washington. Carroll asks J.J. if he will be back covering the protests, and J.J. says he's not sure EWN will allow him back. Cage tells him that Emily has him on the schedule to work the following afternoon for on-campus news. J.J. says he can go to EWN after his history class the following morning. J.J hugs Carroll and they say they will come to EWN the following day to see J.J.
On Saturday, October 24, 2020 J.J tells Ryan about lunch with Carroll the previous day. J.J. says Carroll sees people differently, they point out things that J.J. doesn't notice, or make J.J. frame things with his camera to see them. Carroll sees friends as interesting individuals, but the sex thing isn't there at all. J.J. thinks it's weird, but good too. If J.J. were to be attracted, it would be similar to him being attracted to any woman who wasn't interested. It is what it is.
===Kidnap and Blackmail===
In mid-October 2020, there is a further kidnap attempt, followed by an attempted raid of the EWN building, and blackmail. Photos of the previous torture are sent as a direct message to Carroll's Twitter account, with a threat to release the photos to the public. Carroll decides to preempt the blackmail by releasing the images through EWN together with their story.
Carroll is injured at a protest in downtown Portland on December 18, 2020, and taken to OHSU.
Category:Independent