OHIO VICTIMS OF CRIME COMPENSATION PROGRAM'S
EIGHTH ANNUAL AWARDS BANQUET
REMARKS BY
AILEEN ADAMS
APRIL 18, 1995
IT IS INDEED A PLEASURE TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND YOUR AWARDS CEREMONY THIS EVENING AND TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH YOU. I WOULD ESPECIALLY LIKE TO THANK THOMAS J. MOYER, CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT OF OHIO; MARY CARRAN WEBSTER, MANAGER OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS FOR THE OHIO VICTIMS OF CRIME COMPENSATION PROGRAM; AND MILES DURFEY, CLERK OF THE COURT OF CLAIMS, FOR INVITING ME TO BE HERE.
AS MOST OF YOU KNOW, AS THE DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE FOR VICTIMS OF CRIME, I ADMINISTER THE CRIME VICTIMS FUND WHICH IS A UNIQUE FORM OF JUSTICE DERIVED -- NOT FROM TAXPAYERS -- BUT FROM FINES AND PENALTY ASSESSMENTS LEVELED AGAINST FEDERAL CRIMINAL OFFENDERS. OVER 90 PERCENT OF THESE FUNDS -- WHICH LAST YEAR AMOUNTED TO ABOUT $230 MILLION -- ARE DISTRIBUTED TO STATES TO SUPPORT LOCAL VICTIM ASSISTANCE AND STATE COMPENSATION PROGRAMS. DURING THE PAST DECADE, OHIO HAS RECEIVED ALMOST $31 MILLION IN VOCA COMPENSATION GRANTS AND MORE THAN $27 MILLION IN VICTIM ASSISTANCE GRANTS -- MAKING A GRAND TOTAL OF NEARLY $58 MILLION.
I AM PARTICULARLY PLEASED TO BRING WITH ME TONIGHT TO PRESENT TO MR. DURFEY OHIO'S VICTIM COMPENSATION GRANT AWARD FOR FY96 FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF ALMOST $4.8 MILLION. I KNOW THAT THIS MONEY WILL BE VERY WELL SPENT HELPING VICTIMS TO HEAL AND TO FIND JUSTICE.
IN MY REMARKS TONIGHT I WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS RIGHTS WEEK -- WHICH BEGINS ON SUNDAY AND THE OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING -- THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY OF WHICH IS TOMORROW; I WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS FOR CRIME VICTIMS THAT HAVE BEEN INITIATED ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY, AS WELL AS SOME OF THE DIRECTIONS THAT I HOPE WE ARE MOVING IN TO IMPROVE SERVICES FOR VICTIMS. AND FINALLY, SINCE THIS EVENING IS A CELEBRATION OF INDIVIDUALS WHOSE COMMITMENT AND DEDICATION HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF COUNTLESS VICTIMS OF CRIME, I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO RECOGNIZE IN ABSENTIA THE MANY CRIME VICTIMS AROUND THE COUNTRY WHO ARE AMONG OUR NATION'S MOST EFFECTIVE VOICES AGAINST CRIME.
WE THINK OF PEOPLE LIKE MARC KLASS, WHO HAS WORKED HARD TO SECURE TOUGHER PENALTIES FOR REPEAT VIOLENT OFFENDERS AND REGISTRATION OF SEX OFFENDERS AFTER HIS DAUGHTER, POLLY, WAS KIDNAPED FROM HER OWN HOME DURING A SLUMBER PARTY AND MURDERED BY A PAROLED VIOLENT OFFENDER. WE THINK OF THE FOUNDERS OF MOTHERS AGAINST DRUNK DRIVING WHO TAUGHT AMERICA THAT A LOADED DRIVER CAN BE JUST AS DEADLY AS A LOADED GUN. LARGELY THROUGH MADD'S EFFORTS, ALCOHOL-RELATED FATALITIES HAVE DECREASED BY 31 PERCENT IN THE LAST 10 YEARS. THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS ARE TRULY REMARKABLE. WE THINK OF STEPHEN SPOSATO, WHO WORKED SO HARD TO HELP PASS THE ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN AFTER HIS WIFE AND SEVEN OTHERS WERE MURDERED IN SAN FRANCISCO BY AN ASSAILANT WIELDING A WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION. WE THINK OF PEOPLE LIKE JOHN AND PAT BYRON OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY WHOSE ADVOCACY LED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPUTERIZED CALL-BACK SYSTEM THAT NOTIFIES VICTIMS WHEN THEIR OFFENDERS ARE BEING RELEASED FROM JAIL. THEIR DAUGHTER, MARY, HAD BEEN MURDERED ON HER 21ST BIRTHDAY BY A FORMER BOYFRIEND AFTER HE POSTED BAIL ON A CHARGE OF RAPING HER. ALTHOUGH HE HAD RAPED HER, STALKED HER, AND THREATENED TO KILL HER, NO ONE NOTIFIED MARY OF HIS RELEASE. THROUGH THE BYRONS' EFFORTS, THE VICTIM NOTIFICATION SYSTEM HAS BEEN ADOPTED STATEWIDE.
WE THINK OF FRANCIS DAVIS OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, WHOSE THREE SONS WERE SHOT AND KILLED IN BEDFORD STYVESANT. FRANCIS HAS CHANNELED HER ANGER AND GRIEF INTO ACTIVISM BY FOUNDING AN ALL VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATION CALLED "MOTHERS OF ALL CHILDREN." IT SUPPORTS AND COUNSELS SURVIVORS OF HOMICIDE VICTIMS, AND ORGANIZES COMMUNITY VIOLENCE PREVENTION ACTIVITIES, SUCH AS YOUTH BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS CALLED "SHOOT HOOPS, NOT GUNS."
AND ON THE EVE OF THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING WE THINK OF THE MULTITUDE OF DEDICATED PROFESSIONALS AND VOLUNTEERS WHO CAME FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO SUPPORT AND ASSIST CRIME VICTIMS. WE WATCHED WITH ADMIRATION AS THEY DID THE WORK THAT NEEDED TO BE DONE -- SEARCHING FOR SURVIVORS, RESCUING THE WOUNDED, AND COMFORTING THE BEREAVED. AS A SYMBOL OF ALL OF THE EFFORTS MADE BY COUNTLESS PEOPLE TO HELP IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE BOMBING, I THINK OF REBECCA ANDERSON, WHO HAS BEEN CALLED "THE FALLEN ANGEL OF MERCY." NO ONE WHO KNEW REBECCA WAS SURPRISED TO HEAR THAT THE 37-YEAR-OLD NURSE, AND MOTHER OF FOUR, HAD RUSHED TO HELP IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE BOMBING. IN TRYING TO SAVE OTHERS, HOWEVER, SHE LOST HER OWN LIFE.
THOSE OF US WHO WORK ON BEHALF OF CRIME VICTIMS ARE HUMBLED BY THE MANY ACTS OF HEROISM AND BRAVERY OF SO MANY OF OUR COLLEAGUES, INCLUDING THOSE OF YOU WHO WILL BE HONORED HERE TONIGHT.
WHILE NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS RIGHTS WEEK, WHICH BEGINS SUNDAY, IS A TIME TO REMEMBER THE LIVES THAT HAVE BEEN LOST AND DAMAGED BY CRIME, IT IS ALSO A TIME TO RECOGNIZE HOW FAR WE'VE COME -- HOW MUCH WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED FOR CRIME VICTIMS IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. A VICTIMS BILL OF RIGHTS -- ONCE A NOVEL IDEA -- IS NOW A REALITY IN VIRTUALLY EVERY STATE. ABOUT 20 STATES HAVE AMENDED THEIR STATE CONSTITUTIONS TO ENSURE THESE CRUCIAL RIGHTS. VICTIM ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS, WHICH WERE FEW IN NUMBER IN THE LATE 1960'S AND GENERALLY SERVED RAPE VICTIMS AND BATTERED WOMEN, NOW NUMBER IN THE THOUSANDS AND SERVE ALL TYPES OF CRIME VICTIMS. TWENTY YEARS AGO THERE WERE FEW VICTIM COMPENSATION PROGRAMS. TODAY, EVERY STATE HAS A PROGRAM TO HELP REIMBURSE VICTIMS FOR MENTAL HEALTH, MEDICAL, FUNERAL, AND OTHER EXPENSES. TODAY WE HAVE A CRIME VICTIMS FUND -- MONEY FROM FEDERAL CRIMINAL OFFENDERS -- WHICH HAS PROVIDED OVER $1 BILLION TO CRIME VICTIMS PROGRAMS IN THE PAST DECADE. THE PRESIDENT AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL WORKED HARD FOR THE PASSAGE OF THE 1994 CRIME ACT WHICH ESTABLISHES MANY NEW RIGHTS FOR CRIME VICTIMS. FOR EXAMPLE, THE ACT GUARANTEES VIOLENT CRIME VICTIMS THE RIGHT TO ADDRESS THE COURT AT THE TIME OF SENTENCING TO DESCRIBE THE IMPACT OF THAT CRIME ON THEIR LIVES. IT ENABLES SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIMS TO PETITION THE COURT TO HAVE THEIR ACCUSED OFFENDERS TESTED FOR THE HIV VIRUS, AND THE ACT IS HELPING TO PUT 100,000 COMMUNITY POLICE OFFICERS ON OUR STREETS TO FIGHT CRIME. THE LANDMARK VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT, CONTAINED IN THE CRIME ACT, IS THE FIRST COMPREHENSIVE FEDERAL EFFORT TO COMBAT THESE CRIMES.
WE HAVE COME A LONG WAY -- AND WHILE WE NEED TO MOURN OUR LOSSES, IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO CELEBRATE OUR MANY ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND THE REMARKABLE PROGRAMS THAT HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED FOR VICTIMS IN MANY COMMUNITIES, INCLUDING THROUGHOUT OHIO. I WOULD LIKE TO DESCRIBE JUST A FEW OF THE INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS THAT I HAVE SEEN AS I'VE TRAVELED AROUND THE COUNTRY -- PROGRAMS WHICH I THINK ILLUSTRATE AN IMPORTANT DIRECTION FOR THE FUTURE.
IN THE AREA OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE, A SUCCESSFUL TEAM APPROACH TO HANDLING THESE CASES HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED IN MANY COMMUNITIES. THIS APPROACH WAS FIRST INITIATED BY BUD CRAMER, THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY OF HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA IN 1985 WHEN HE DECIDED THAT ABUSED CHILDREN HAD TO BE TREATED IN A DIFFERENT WAY BY OUR CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM IF THEY COULD EVER BE EXPECTED TO PARTICIPATE EFFECTIVELY IN THAT SYSTEM. HE WAS TIRED OF SEEING CHILDREN RE-VICTIMIZED --- BEING INTERVIEWED MANY DIFFERENT TIMES BY NUMEROUS AGENCY OFFICIALS IN FRIGHTENING SETTINGS SUCH AS POLICE STATIONS. HE DEVELOPED AN ADVOCACY CENTER ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR KIDS, WHERE GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES WORK TOGETHER TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF INTERVIEWS AND COORDINATE CASES. I CO-FOUNDED A SIMILAR CENTER IN LOS ANGELES AFTER EXPERIENCING THE SAME FRUSTRATION WITH THE TRADITIONAL SYSTEM. I REMEMBER VIVIDLY MANY CASES HANDLED IN THE OLD WAY. A FOUR-YEAR-OLD CHILD WHO HAD THREE SEPARATE PELVIC EXAMINATIONS BECAUSE OF A LACK OF COORDINATION BETWEEN AGENCIES. I REMEMBER A 14-YEAR-OLD BOY WHO WAS SODOMIZED BY A NEIGHBOR. HE WAS INTERVIEWED 12 DIFFERENT TIMES BY VARIOUS PEOPLE IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM. IN RESPONSE TO THESE KINDS OF CASES, OUR CENTER PROVIDES ALL OF THE SERVICES THESE CHILDREN NEED IN ONE CHILD-FRIENDLY FACILITY. THERE IS ONE INTERVIEW CONDUCTED JOINTLY BY THE DEPUTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY AND POLICE OFFICER. IT IS WATCHED BY THE DEPENDENCY WORKER AND CHILD ADVOCATE. THE FACILITY ALSO PROVIDES MEDICAL CARE, THERAPY SERVICES, AND IT HAS A COURT ORIENTATION PROGRAM. YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL, SIMILAR PROGRAM IN AKRON, OHIO. BUD'S VISION NOT ONLY GAVE RISE TO OUR CENTER, IT LED TO A NATIONAL MOVEMENT, AND TODAY THERE ARE MORE THAN 250 CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY CENTERS IN SOME STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT IN 43 STATES. THIS KIND OF INTERAGENCY MODEL SHOULD EXIST IN EVERY COMMUNITY.
ANOTHER INNOVATIVE PROGRAM WAS INITIATED IN JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA, WHERE THE NATION'S FIRST COMPREHENSIVE VICTIM SERVICES. IT PROVIDES A COMPREHENSIVE RANGE OF SERVICES IN ONE LOCATION FOR ALL CRIME VICTIMS, EXPANDING UPON THE MODEL USED IN CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY CENTERS. CENTER STAFF OPERATE AN EMERGENCY FUND FOR VICTIMS AND CAN PAY FOR SUCH ITEMS AS EMERGENCY MEDICAL ITEMS AND CHANGING THE LOCKS ON HOMES WHICH HAVE BEEN BURGLARIZED. COUNSELORS PROVIDE NEEDED THERAPY, RESPOND TO MAJOR CATASTROPHES AS PART OF A CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM, AS WELL AS TO ALL HOMICIDES ALONG WITH THE POLICE. A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE STATE VICTIM COMPENSATION PROGRAM AND SELF-HELP GROUPS, SUCH AS MADD AND POMC, ARE ALSO LOCATED AT THE FACILITY. OVC IS VERY INTERESTED IN THIS CENTER BECAUSE IT REPRESENTS A PARTNERSHIP MODEL OF SERVICE FOR ALL CRIME VICTIMS. ISN'T THAT WHERE WE SHOULD BE HEADED IN THE NEXT CENTURY?
A NUMBER OF INTERESTING PRACTICES HAVE BEEN INITIATED IN THE FIELD OF CORRECTIONS. FOR EXAMPLE, MOTHERS AGAINST DRUNK DRIVING HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN ORGANIZING VICTIM IMPACT PANELS WHERE VICTIMS OR RELATIVES OF VICTIMS KILLED BY DRUNK DRIVERS PARTICIPATE IN PROGRAMS TO EDUCATE DRUNK DRIVERS AND THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THE DEVASTATING IMPACT OF THIS CRIME. THIS MODEL HAS BEEN UTILIZED AT THE CALIFORNIA YOUTH AUTHORITY (CYA) SINCE 1985 AND WAS FEATURED ON A 60 MINUTES SEGMENT. IT HELPS TO CHANGE THE ATTITUDES OF YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS, AND ASSISTS VICTIMS IN HAVING A VOICE IN THE PROGRAMS AND POLICIES OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES. THESE KIND OF VICTIM IMPACT PANELS SHOULD BE USED IN OUR SCHOOLS AND IN TRAINING FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS
ANOTHER IMPORTANT INNOVATION THAT BENEFITS VICTIMS OF CRIME IS THE KIND OF VOLUNTEER TEAM APPROACH TO HANDLING MASSIVE VICTIMIZATIONS THAT HAS BEEN PIONEERED BY THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA. THEY HAVE DEVELOPED A STATEWIDE CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM THAT INCLUDES 110 MEMBERS FROM 16 DISCIPLINES, RANGING FROM MENTAL HEALTH PRACTITIONERS, TO CRIME VICTIMS ADVOCATES, SOCIAL WORKERS, LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND CLERGY. EVERY TEAM MEMBER RECEIVES A MINIMUM OF 24 HOURS OF BASIC RESPONSE TRAINING. THE PRIMARY GOAL OF THE TEAM IS TO TRAIN LOCAL COMMUNITIES AND INSTITUTIONS HOW TO DEVELOP THEIR OWN LOCAL CRISIS RESPONSE SYSTEM, AS WELL AS TO RESPOND TO CRITICAL INCIDENTS.
IN THE HIGHLY PUBLICIZED SOUTH CAROLINA CASE IN WHICH SUSAN SMITH WAS CONVICTED OF DROWNING HER TWO YOUNG SONS, TWO GROUPS OF 25 TEAM MEMBERS EACH HELPED THE COMMUNITY OF UNION DEAL WITH THE AFTERMATH OF THIS TRAGIC EVENT. THEY PROVIDED DEBRIEFINGS FOR MANY GROUPS, INCLUDING THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS WHO WORKED ON THE CASE, AND SCHOOL CHILDREN WHO WERE ALSO GREATLY IMPACTED BY THE DEATHS OF THE TWO YOUNG BOYS. THIS TYPE OF PROGRAM IS ANOTHER KIND OF IMPORTANT INNOVATION WHICH DESERVES REPLICATION.
ALL AROUND THE COUNTRY ONE SEES NEW APPROACHES THAT BENEFIT CRIME VICTIMS --- WHETHER IT'S CHILDREN'S COURTS - COURTROOMS DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR CHILD VICTIMS; COMMUNITY POLICE OR PROSECUTORS WHO DEFINE THEIR JOBS IN THE FIELD WITH THE INPUT OF THE PEOPLE THEY SERVE; OR STRONGER VICTIM-ORIENTED LAWS.
WHETHER IT'S SOCIAL WORKERS TEAMING UP WITH POLICE OFFICERS TO RESPOND TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CALLS (N.Y. VISIT); WHETHER IT'S NEW WAYS OF DELIVERING MEDICAL CARE TO CRIME VICTIMS, SUCH AS THE SPECIAL CENTER IN TULSA, OKLAHOMA, WHERE NURSE PRACTITIONERS CONDUCT SEXUAL ASSAULT EXAMS IN A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT, AWAY FROM THE CHAOS OF EMERGENCY ROOMS, OR WHETHER IT'S CORRECTIONS OFFICIALS REDEFINING THEIR ROLE TO BE MORE VICTIM ORIENTED -- TO TELL VICTIMS OF THE STATUS OF OFFENDERS AND ENCOURAGE THEIR PARTICIPATION IN SENTENCING.
BUILDING UPON THESE KINDS OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS, OVC IS DEVELOPING WITH VICTIMS LEADERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY A NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS AGENDA WHICH WILL EMPHASIZE INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF PARTNERSHIPS IN PROVIDING SERVICES TO CRIME VICTIMS. I WANT TO MENTION BRIEFLY A FEW OF THE OTHER AREAS THAT I THINK WILL BE HIGHLIGHTED IN OUR AGENDA DOCUMENT.
1. MOST STATE VICTIMS BILLS OF RIGHTS ONLY APPLY TO CERTAIN CRIME VICTIMS --- VICTIMS OF FELONIES. IF YOU ARE THE VICTIM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OR DRUNK DRIVING, YOUR CASE IS LIKELY TO BE PROSECUTED AS A MISDEMEANOR. IN WHICH CASE, YOUR STATE VICTIMS BILL OF RIGHTS DOES NOT APPLY. YOU DON'T FOR EXAMPLE, HAVE THE RIGHT TO GIVE A VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT AT SENTENCING. I THINK THAT BOTH STATE AND FEDERAL VICTIMS BILLS OF RIGHTS SHOULD APPLY TO EVERY CRIME VICTIM, NOT JUST VICTIMS OF FELONIES.
2. MOST JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEMS ARE CLOAKED IN SECRECY. VICTIMS HAVE NO RIGHTS WITHIN THOSE SYSTEMS, WHICH WERE DESIGNED YEARS AGO TO PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS. TODAY, YOUTH VIOLENCE IS THE FASTEST GROWING SEGMENT OF CRIME. IT IS CHARACTERIZED, AT TIMES, WITH UNTHINKABLE BRUTALITY AND INHUMANITY. IT IS TIME FOR VICTIMS TO HAVE THE SAME RIGHTS IN JUVENILE COURTS AS THEY HAVE IN ADULT COURTS. THIS ADMINISTRATION SUPPORTS SUCH A BILL AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL.
3. MANY PROFESSIONALS WHO DEAL WITH CRIME VICTIMS ARE NEVER TAUGHT IN SCHOOL ABOUT THE IMPACT OF VICTIMIZATION OR BEST PRACTICES IN THE FIELD. THE EDUCATIONAL CURRICULUM IN COLLEGES AND IN GRADUATE SCHOOLS FOR DOCTORS, LAWYERS, NURSES, SOCIAL WORKERS, LAW ENFORCEMENT, MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, THE CLERGY, AND OTHERS, WOULD INCLUDE TRAINING ON CRIME VICTIMS ISSUES. SOME OF THESE COURSES SHOULD BE INTERDISCIPLINARY AND INFORM STUDENTS ABOUT EFFECTIVE TEAM APPROACHES TO HANDLING CRIME. OVC IS FUNDING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE KINDS OF CURRICULA.
4. THERE SHOULD BE COURSES ABOUT CRIME PREVENTION STRATEGIES AND VICTIMIZATION IN EVERY GRADE, BEGINNING IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, SO THAT OUR CHILDREN LEARN HOW TO PROTECT THEMSELVES, AND BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THE SERVICES THAT ARE AVAILABLE IF THEY DO BECOME VICTIMS. OVC IS ALSO FUNDING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS KIND OF CURRICULA.
5. AS DESCRIBED IN THE INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS THAT I CITED, VICTIM IMPACT CLASSES SHOULD BE UTILIZED AS AN IMPORTANT EDUCATIONAL METHOD TO TRAIN PROFESSIONALS, SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN, AND OFFENDERS. MEDICAL EXAMS FOR VICTIMS SHOULD BE CONDUCTED IN SUPPORTIVE SETTINGS, NOT IN HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOMS, AND NURSE PRACTITIONERS SHOULD BE USED MORE WIDELY TO CONDUCT THESE EXAMS. EVERY COMMUNITY AND EVERY INSTITUTION SHOULD HAVE A CRISIS RESPONSE TEAM PREPARED TO ADDRESS MAJOR TRAUMATIC EVENTS.
FINALLY, I BELIEVE THAT THE TEAM APPROACH WIDELY USED NOW TO HANDLE CHILD ABUSE CASES SHOULD BE APPLIED MUCH MORE BROADLY --- AT LEAST TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT CASES -- IF NOT TO ALL CRIME VICTIMS. NO CRIME VICTIM IN AMERICA SHOULD HAVE TO CONFRONT MULTIPLE INTERVIEWS, MULTIPLE INVESTIGATORS AND PROSECUTORS, A LACK OF COORDINATION BETWEEN AGENCIES, AND A LACK OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE STATUS OF THEIR CASE. WE MUST PUT RESOURCES INTO EXPANDING THIS TEAM APPROACH AND INTO ENFORCING THE RIGHTS OF CRIME VICTIMS.
THESE ARE BUT A FEW OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT I HOPE COMMUNITIES WILL CONSIDER IMPLEMENTING TO ENHANCE VICTIMS RIGHTS AND SERVICES AS WE MOVE INTO THE NEXT CENTURY.
IN CONCLUDING, I WANT TO DESCRIBE ONE OF MY MOST SIGNIFICANT EXPERIENCES AS OVC DIRECTOR. ABOUT A YEAR AGO, I HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF MEETING CHERYL BESS, THE RECIPIENT OF AN OVC SPECIAL COURAGE AWARD PRESENTED BY THE PRESIDENT AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL. TEN YEARS AGO, CHERYL WAS A STRAIGHT-A STUDENT IN THE NINTH GRADE. SHE DREAMED OF BECOMING A DOCTOR AND WORKING IN HER AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY. WHILE WALKING TO SCHOOL ON A BEAUTIFUL OCTOBER DAY LIKE TODAY, CHERYL WAS OFFERED A RIDE BY THE JANITOR OF HER BUILDING, WHO WAS ALSO A REPEAT SEX OFFENDER. HE DROVE HER TO THE DESERT, WHERE HE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED HER, THREW ACID ON HER FACE AND ARMS, AND LEFT HER TO DIE. CHERYL TOLD HERSELF THAT SHE HAD TO SURVIVE, BECAUSE HER MOTHER WOULD NEVER RECOVER FROM HER DEATH. SHE WANDERED IN AGONY FOR 8 HOURS BEFORE BEING RESCUED.
CHERYL IS BLIND, DEAF IN ONE EAR, AND PHYSICALLY DISFIGURED BEYOND RECOGNITION. BUT HER ASSAILANT COULD NOT STRIP HER OF HER VOICE, NOR COULD HE TAKE HER OPTIMISTIC, DETERMINED SPIRIT. TODAY, CHERYL IS NOT ONLY A MAGNIFICENT GOSPEL SINGER, A COLLEGE STUDENT, AND THE HOST OF A RADIO TALK SHOW, BUT ALSO ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL ADVOCATES FOR VICTIMS' RIGHTS AND SERVICES IN THE COUNTRY. SHE REMINDS US ALL THAT THE HUMAN SPIRIT CAN OVERCOME ANY TRAGEDY, AND THAT ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE FOR CRIME VICTIMS. AS WE COMMEMORATE NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS RIGHTS WEEK AND PAY TRIBUTE TO THE OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING VICTIMS -- AS WE RECOGNIZE THE MANY ACHIEVEMENTS IN OHIO, I WANT YOU TO KNOW YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE A VOICE AND ALWAYS FIND A FRIEND AT THE OFFICE FOR VICTIMS OF CRIME.