Murder Victims' Families for Reconciliation-New Jersey
Reconciliation means accepting that you cannot undo the murder but you can decide how you want to live afterwards
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Founded in 1976, Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation is a national organization of family members of both homicide and state killings who oppose the death penalty in all cases. Our mission is to abolish the death penalty. We advocate for programs and policies that reduce the rate of homicide and promote crime prevention and alternatives to violence. We support programs that address the needs of victims, helping them to rebuild their lives. MVFR is a non-religious organization that includes people of a wide variety of faiths and belief systems. Because violent crime cuts across a broad spectrum of society, our members are geographically, racially, and economically diverse. |
I don't
get the need for revenge. How does it make it
better? - Bill Piper
Bill
Piper lost his mother, Mrs. Arlene K. Piper, to murder at the hands of
a nighttime intruder previously unknown to her in July of 1999.
Bill and his wife, Molly Weigel, as the only family members in
opposition to the death penalty, worked in various ways to convince
the family and the prosecution to accept a plea bargain sentencing
the murderer to life in prison without parole. Knowing how
detrimental the legal process involved in capital conviction is to
the healthy grieving of already traumatized family members of
victims, Bill and Molly are beginning to find ways to work actively
as death penalty abolitionists and as part of support networks for
anyone in a similar situation. The trauma of a loved one’s
murder is only compounded by being asked to participate in further
killing. Enough is enough. “Not In Our
Name!”
I was a
staunch opponent of capital punishment before my daughter’s murder
and continue to be so. The death penalty is not justice. It is a
barbaric means of revenge that most civilized societies have
abandoned. I have always
been opposed to the death penalty. As much pain and turmoil that my
family and I suffered from my daughter’s murder, my feelings
concerning the death penalty have not changed. I feel that the death
penalty is not administered equally across racial
and socio-economic groups. It is not a deterrent and only serves as
a vehicle of vengeance. - Eddie Hicks
Eddie
Hicks is 48 and has been married for 30 years to his wife Karen. He
had three adult children. His oldest daughter was murdered on May
29, 2000 at the age of 26. He also has 4 grandchildren. He was
employed with the Atlantic City New Jersey Fire Department for 25
years. The first 17 of those years as a suppression Firefighter, the
last 8 years as a Fire Marshal and the Public Fire Safety Education
Officer for the city of Atlantic City. He retired from the Fire
Department April 1st 2002. Prior to the Fire Service, He was
enlisted in the US Marine Corps during the Viet Nam war era. He now
resides in Galloway Township NJ. He is a Volunteer for the Superior
Court of New Jersey on the Juvenile Conference Committee, Atlantic
County. He has been involved in mentoring programs for troubled
youths. He is a past President of the Atlantic City Chapter of the
International Association of Black Professional
Firefighters.
Lisa was killed by her husband, because she was
leaving him. Before he was given a 20 year sentence for her
murder, I couldn't help but think about what I would tell my young
grandaughter if the state imposed the death penalty. How do
you explain the death penalty to a child? I could hear myself:
"Daddy killed Mommy and the state killed Daddy, but remember, child,
killing is wrong." What kind of lesson is
that? -
June Post
Lorry W. Post and June L. Post lost their
daughter, Lisa Price, then 29, to a domestic murder in the state of
Georgia 14 years ago. For the past five years, the Posts have
devoted all of their time and energy to working in NJ with the
expectation of a comprehensive study of all aspects of use of that
penalty before NJ resumes executions. The Posts are
particularly concerned about the hierarchy of victims; how it is
that some victims seem to warrant the death penalty for their
killers, while others, such as the man who murdered Lisa, warrant
only a relatively light penalty. They believe that all lives have
equal value and neither individuals nor the state shall take lives.
They wage this struggle to honor the memory of their beloved
Lisa.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact:June and Lorry Post
1-800-257-6204
lorry_post@njmoratorium.org