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The upcoming edition of "48 Hours" (Saturday, 10 p.m., CBS/Ch. 2) tells a tale of sexual abuse and courage that plucks the abuser from her Utah home and sends her to prison.

And the woman at the center of the story, Cal-Berkeley assistant swim coach Kristen Cunnane, is nothing short of heroic. She went very public with the story of how she had been repeatedly raped by her middle-school gym teacher, Julie Correa, in Moraga, Calif.

"Isn't it amazing that she came forward?" said CBS correspondent Tracy Smith. "She said, 'I want to go public. I want my name to be out there.' "

Cunnane was also abused by a second teacher. And by coming forward, she prompted other former students to join her — and an investigation revealed that school district personnel violated the law by failing to report the abuse to police.

"If she hadn't come forward, I don't know that it would have ever been unmasked," Smith said.

The story detours to Utah, where Correa, her husband and two sons were living near Salt Lake City when Cunnane went to police with her story in 2010.

"She was out of teaching," Smith said. "She was very active in her sons' sports teams, but she was basically a stay-at-home mom."

It's "tragic" for Correa's family. "I mean, those poor boys. You have to feel for them," Smith said. "But at the same time, as Kristen says, even though she feels for the family, she also feels she can't let that stop her from bringing her abuser to justice."

The "48 Hours" report features recordings of phone conversations between Cunnane and Correa; video of police going to Correa's Utah home and interviewing her; and video of police interrogating Correa.

"She was also pretty forthcoming in those interviews," Smith said. Correa "talked about the relationship fairly openly."

It's a very powerful report that Smith said she found "humbling" to work on.

"You can't help but think, 'What would I do if I was in her shoes?' " Smith said. "I don't know if I would have the strength to do that."

Among the things Smith found "challenging" about the story is "that when you bring these things up … people snicker," she said. But viewers will see a young woman who didn't want to be identified and "how this has destroyed her life. It is the farthest thing from funny."

"Same with Kristen. She can't go to her childhood home [where she was raped repeatedly]."

Smith said she hopes the report prompts parents to "take this issue seriously" and "recognize what's an inappropriate relationship" between their children and educators.

"And everybody we talked to said, 'Please, just check your kids' cellphones.' I think so much of this today starts with text messages, with sexting. We have to be vigilant with that sort of stuff in our kids' lives."

Scott D. Pierce covers TV for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.