Expressing goals of solidarity and assistance, Ali Purcell sang Carrie Underwood’s “I’ll Stand By You” to a group of about 30 people gathered to recognize the rights of crime victims Monday.
Purcell’s performance was featured in Athens County’s 5th Annual Flower Planting Ceremony, which is part of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, outside of the Athens County Court of Common Pleas.
The ceremony is Athens’ way of commemorating and showing support for crime victims and their families, said Athens County Prosecutor Keller Blackburn, whose office sponsored the event.
“It’s nice to be able to take part in an event that remembers those who were injured, victimized and traumatized,” Blackburn said. “The criminal process often times forgets the victim.”
The theme for this year’s National Crime Victims’ Rights Week — which has taken place each April since 1981 — is “Extending the Vision: Reaching Every Victim.”
“Many times in the justice system, the focus is put on the defendant and his (or her) rights,” said Jordan Giuliani, director of the Victims Assistance Program.
The intention of the ceremony was to shift the spotlight onto crime victims and their suffering.
In a justice system in which criminal cases are labeled as “State v. Defendant,” Blackburn said victims are the ones who are most adversely affected.
The county’s Victim Assistance Program aims to eliminate any barriers victims face, stress their right to be informed and to know their rights and to make them a part of the process that may lead to a conviction.
With the goal of celebrating, honoring and remembering crime victims, Blackburn invited the victims and their families to plant a flower for themselves or in the name of a loved one.
The plaque on a flowerbed in front of the courthouse reads: “The flowerbed is dedicated to victims of crime in Athens County.”
Athens County Probate Judge Robert W. Stewart praised the Victim Assistance Program and called for further funding of the program.
“I want to see victims made whole to the extent possible and treated with the respect they deserve,” Stewart said.
Linda Bowen spoke in memory of her parents, Fred and Mary Hart, who were killed nine months ago when another driver hit their vehicle from behind.
Bowen’s sister, Mary Wemmer, sees the ceremony as an opportunity to remember lost loved ones and to let others know of her family’s loss.
“We’re giving a voice to those who never had the chance to speak,” Blackburn said.
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