Sarah Walsh chose to go public with her allegations of sexual assault by a taxi driver in St. John's.

Her expectation of privacy went out the window when she spoke to reporters and agreed to use her name — but what happened next defied any expectations she had about human decency.

She was trolled by accounts online, threatened by strangers and even forced to move after she spoke out publicly.

"Ultimately, my decision to move had basically been completely made by the fact that I had received threatening letters to my house," Walsh said.

While her story resulted in public shaming, it did not result in criminal charges.

Now, the province's Committee on Violence Against Women and Girls is developing a pilot project to protect victims who wish to remain anonymous after a sexual assault

Community groups could take statements

Instead of going to police, survivors of assault can go to designated community groups, such as the Sexual Assault Crisis and Prevention Centre, or a women's centre.

A trained employee would take a statement and relay that statement to the local police force, but the complainant would stay anonymous. Any requests to speak with the complainant would go through the third party.

"It's about that sense of having the power to have told your story, know it's been reported, yet not have to feel that in order to do so, you have to lay charges," said Linda Ross, co-chair of the committee.

"As we know, many survivors are not prepared to do that. And for some it takes a very long time before, if they are ever prepared to come forward, and report."

Linda Ross is the co-chair of the province's Committee on Violence Against Women and Girls. (Eddy Kennedy/CBC)

Even if charges aren't laid right away, the anonymous report helps police keep tabs on alleged abusers, which could identify repeat offenders.

A spokesperson for the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said the force is "totally on board" with the pilot project.

Ross said the idea came from Peter Clark, the recently-retired assistant commissioner of the RCMP in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Clark was instrumental in implementing the same system during his time in Yukon with the RCMP.

The third-party reporting system is also being used in Manitoba and British Columbia, and other provinces have discussed adopting a similar plan.

I do think that it would ultimately help. - Sarah Walsh

For Walsh, the idea makes perfect sense.

Her experience speaking with police was uncomfortable and impersonal, she said. She had to speak with several administrators and officers — telling the same disturbing story over and over — before finally dealing with one investigator.

More comfortable speaking with 3rd party

She understands why some women would be more comfortable speaking with a third party.

"The program [could be] in conjunction with sexual assault nurses and different programs that would verify things," she said.

"So I do think that it would ultimately help, especially if you're talking about somebody that because of personal reasons or safety reasons doesn't want to be named."

There is no timeline for when the pilot project could be implemented, and no firm decision that it even will be.

Ross said the committee still has to find the best process for third-party reporting to work both in St. John's and in rural parts of the province.