4-29-06 late entry
4-29-06 Last Day of Victims of Violent Crime Week

Went to Sacramento Monday - Bekah's portait overwhelming.
Taps and Amazing Grace as well. Hugs spontaneous heartfelt -
the square in front of the capitol teeming with homicide
survivors.

The cries for justice coming from every corner. A few of the
stories shared with me that day:

- The young kids whose 3-month old cousin had been beaten to
death by her faher "because she was hungry and crying." He
got five years.
- The woman whose son was stabbed to death by his girlfriend's
mother. She got 26 years to life.
- I met and hugged Jean
O'Hara, my idol and role model as I go into the CYA to give
victim impact classes to youthful offenders. She's been doing it for years.
She and her husband discovered the gruesomely murdered bodies of her
daughter, grandson, and her daughter's boyfriend.
- I met Chandra Levy's mother. She declined to share with me what she suspects/believes
regarding the disappearance and murder of her daughter. Clearly though
she is still trying to get to the bottom of it. She circulated purple sheets
of paper asking that all families of murder victims take up and display
purple ribbons for the rest of this year. I haven't done it yet, but I yet
may.
- i miss you candi...this girl caught my eye. when i approached her mother to make sure it
was okay to take a picture of her, i learned that her sister Candi had
been killed by a drunk driver who threw her 100 feet through the air, and
did one year total for the crime.

there's more - but it'll have to wait...
the kids whose moms and in one case a sister were part of the group
I was with:

debra's Victor

LaWanda's Reggie

Rhoma's Paul Jr

Shay's brother Erick

Carla's Carl

anna's Teresa

Belinda's Christopher
- posted by barbara @ 5/04/2006 10:28:00 PM