| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | OVC |
FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 1992 | 202/307-0781 |
PRESIDENT BUSH, ATTORNEY GENERAL BARR PRESENT AWARDS
TO EIGHT INDIVIDUALS FOR ASSISTANCE TO CRIME VICTIMS
WASHINGTON, D.C.--President Bush and Attorney General William
Barr today presented awards to eight persons in recognition of
their exemplary service on behalf of crime victims and their
families. In a White House ceremony commemorating National Crime
Victims Rights Week, which begins Sunday, the President and the
Attorney General joined in honoring the eight individuals who work
to improve the treatment of the innocent victims of crime.
"This nation owes a debt of gratitude to these men and women
who have given their time and effort to help victims recover from
the terrible trauma of a crime and to improve society's response to
crime victims," Barr said. "I am pleased to have this opportunity
to join with President Bush in honoring these eight outstanding
individuals. Through their efforts--and the efforts of many others
across this country--significant progress has been made in
crime, while protecting the rights of the innocent victims of
holding criminals accountable for their actions."
The honorees were selected from nominations submitted by
federal, state and local criminal justice and victim assistance
officials; national victim assistance organizations; and individual
citizens to the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), within the
Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs, which administers
the Crime Victims Fund award program. OVC also is a sponsor of
National Crime Victims Rights Week each year. Honored today were:
--The Honorable Richard Barajas, E1 Paso, Texas. In 1987, in
response to the murder of his brother, Justice Barajas abandoned
his private law practice to run for District Attorney for the 83rd
Judicial District in Texas. Upon his election, Barajas implemented
a prosecutor-based victim assistance center--the first in rural West Texas.
In December 1991, the governor of Texas appointed Barajas to the Eighth
District Court Of Appeals. A recognized authority on the rights of crime
victims, Barajas has contributed his expertise and energy to a number of
victim-related efforts in Texas, including the Texas War on Drugs, the
Texas Council on Family Violence, the Texas Center for the Judiciary, and the
Texas State Bar Committee on Victims and Witnesses. He also has worked
at the national level on behalf of crime victims, and currently
serves as Treasurer of the National Organization for Victim
Assistance.
--Colleen Thompson Campbell, San Juan Capistrano, California.
Colleen Campbell is the founder and leader of Memory of Victims
Everywhere (MOVE), a grassroots organization dedicated to advancing
justice reforms in memory of those who have been murdered. She
began her work on victims issues following the murder of her only
son in 1982, and six years later--while her son's case remained
tied up in court--the murder of her brother and his wife. Campbell
has worked tirelessly to organize crime victims so that their
concerns are heard at the state and federal levels. As a MOVE
volunteer and State Victims' Chairwoman, she helped to achieve
passage of California's Crime Victims Justice Reform Act.
--Anita Armstrong Drummond, Montgomery, Alabama. Anita
Armstrong Drummond has served as Executive Director of the Alabama
Crime Victims Compensation Commission since its founding in 1984.
Under her direction, in addition to financially compensating crime
victims, the commission has taken an active role in writing and
promoting legislation on behalf of victims, challenging injustices
to victims by the criminal justice system, and initiating policy
changes in state and local agencies that work with victims. In
1984, there were only five victim service programs in Alabama.
Through the work of the commission, Victim services are now
available in every judicial district.
In addition to her work on the commission, Drummond coordinated
the first victim/witness program in the Montgomery District Attorney's Office,
established a domestic violence shelter, and was instrumental in
organizing Victims of Crime and Leniency (VOCAL), a statewide victims rights group.
--Ray Larson, Lexington, Kentucky. Since his 1984 appointment and subsequent
election as commonwealth attorney for Kentucky, Ray
Larson has been a champion of justice for crime victims. One of
his first acts as commonwealth attorney was to establish the most
comprehensive prosecutor-based victim assistance program in
Kentucky, a program that laid the groundwork for the development
and implementation of victim assistance agencies throughout the
state. A respected authority on the prosecution of capital murder
cases and drunk driving homicides, Larson has worked to raise
public awareness of crime victims needs and rights. He also was
instrumental in implementing the Drug and Alcohol Resistance
Education (DARE) program in the local public school system. In
1991, Larson was elected as the first president of the Kentucky
Victims' Coalition, an organization founded to give crime victims
and their advocates a voice in state government.
--Tibby Milne, Bountiful, Utah. Spurred to action by the 1975
abduction of a child from her home town, Tibby Milne has since
devoted her energies to protecting children from victimization.
Under her direction, the Utah Council for Crime Prevention joined
other state and local organizations to create a unique child
protection program--the "McGruff House"--a safe place, staffed by
trained volunteers, where children can turn for help in threatening
or emergency situations. The "McGruff House" program has been
adopted by many other states and communities, and adapted for
inner-city and minority communities as an alternative to drug and
gang activity. In 1986, the program was expanded to include a
"McGruff Truck" program which trains utility vehicle drivers to
respond to children in emergency situations. There are now 90,504
"McGruff Houses" and 7,200 trained utility drivers across the
nation. Ten states have passed legislation or resolutions
identifying the "McGruff House" program as the authorized program
and safety symbol for their state.
--Aurelia Sands Belle, Atlanta, Georgia. For the past eight
years, Aurelia Sands Belle has served as director of the Victim
Witness Program of the Metropolitan Atlanta Crime Commission, the
first agency to provide comprehensive services to crime victims in
Atlanta. Under her direction, the program has grown in scope and
intensity, focusing on assistance for underserved victim
populations, such as survivors of homicide, children, the elderly,
and ethnic minorities. Through Belle's leadership, the program has
provided multi-lingual services for non-English speaking victims,
providing these victims access to assistance often for the first
time. In addition to her work in Atlanta, Belle has served with
the National Organization for Victim Assistance and has conducted
numerous training seminars for service providers and community
leaders across the country.
--Anne Seymour, Arlington, Virginia. Anne Seymour is a
nationally-respected public spokesperson for victims rights. She
is a founding staff member of the National Victim Center (NVC), a
national victims rights organization. In her role with NVC,
Seymour has acted as a unifying force among sometimes disparate interest
groups, building bridges between victim rights organizations and drawing
their focus on a common vision. A respected trainer, she has participated
in numerous seminars to improve the quality and timeliness of services
provided to victims nationwide. Seymour also has spearheaded efforts to establish
crime victim services in correctional institutions, actively
promoted constitutional protections for victims, and developed
legislation guarding against the media's disclosure of the names of
sexual assault victims.
--Marlene Annette Young, Ph.D., Washington, D.C. One of the
founders of the national victims rights movement, Marlne Young has
worked on behalf of crime victims and their families for almost 20
years. She has served for the past 11 years as Executive Director
of the National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA), an
organization she founded 17 years ago to further the study and
implementation of victim rights and services. With degrees in both
law and psychology, Young is a renowned authority in the field of
victimology, and is looked to by victims and professionals across
the nation as an impassioned and articulate spokeswoman for crime
victims. Young has eloquently testified before state legislatures
and the Congress on hundreds of occasions, promoting legislation to
safeguard the rights of victims within the criminal justice system.
As a result of her dedicated efforts, much-needed legislative
reforms have been enacted at both the state and federal levels.
Through the work of NOVA's emergency response teams, Young has
personally provided crisis intervention services to communities
traumatized in the aftermath of violent crimes. She also has
travelled extensively to help local communities establish victim
assistance programs and train victim advocates, and is the author
of a considerable body of published work on victim issues.
"I would like to add my appreciation and commendation to these
eight individuals for their commitment to serving the needs and
furthering the rights of the innocent victims of crime and their
families," said Brenda G. Meister, acting director of the Office
for Victims of Crime, which administers the awards program each
year. "Through their outstanding efforts--and the efforts of
thousands of other volunteers and professionals such as law
enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, and corrections
personnel--victims' rights are now becoming fully integrated into
our criminal justice system."
The Office for Victims of Crime serves as the federal focal
point for addressing the needs and improving the treatment of crime
victims. OVC also administers the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA)
program, which awards grants to states to expand victim
compensation and assistance and supports innovative crime victim
projects, and sponsors training to help criminal justice officials
better meet the needs of crime victims and their families. The
VOCA program is financed by the Crime Victims Fund. Monies in the
fund come--not from taxpayers--but from fines, penalties, and bond
forfeitures assessed on convicted federal defendants.
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