1. law, govt and politics
2. legal issues
3. civil rights

April 2015 • Volume 22, Issue 12
Founder
Ted M. Hires, Sr.
Executive Director
Ann Dugger
Bookkeeper/Office Manager
Jo Wilson
Development Director
Roxy Tyler
Interim Editor
Shirley Shaw
Victim Services
Practitioner
Lysa Telzer
Amanda Nobles
Administrative Assistant
Lynn Boone
Victim Services
Volunteer Manager
Anita Cuevas
Public Relations
McCormick Agency, Inc.
Website Management
websessionshosting.com
Larry Cohen
Executive Board
Roger Delaney, Board Chair
Dan Hodges, Co-Chair
Scott Adams, Treasurer
Todney Bynes, Secretary
Robert Bracewell
Chris Butler
Kathy Cold
Ken Jefferson
Stephen Joost
John Kirkland
Tom Murta
Lynn Polley
Sheriff John Rutherford
Michael A. Rutledge
Larry M. Ward
Lou Webber
Charles Wilson
The Justice Coalition was founded in 1995, when one man’s priorities were changed. Ted Hires was
the average businessman working 60 to 80 hours a week and looking out for himself until the day
when he and his staff were robbed at gunpoint. As a victim of a crime, Ted found the crminal justice system worked harder for the criminal than the victim. As a result of his experience, Ted
formed a (501(c)(3)), non-profit organization, Justice Coalition, which continues Ted’s mission of
assisting innocent victims of violent crimes in the Fourth Judicial court system. Since 1995, the
Justice Coalition has been fighting crime every step of the way. Fugitives captured are through a
partnership with local law enforcement agencies, the media, and citizen involvement.
The Justice Coalition’s
Victims’ Advocate
A free newspaper supporting victims’ rights and published monthly by the
Justice Coalition, Inc. The opinions of contributing writers are not necessarily
those of the Victims’ Advocate or the Justice Coalition. The Victims’ Advocate welcomes both editorial and photographic submissions but they cannot be returned.
Please allow six weeks for a response to submitted works. Calendar information
is welcome but must be submitted one month in advance of the event.
©Copyright 2015, the Justice Coalition’s Victims’ Advocate. All rights reserved. The Victims’ Advocate makes every effort to verify the information contained within; however, it assumes no responsibility for claims of advertisers.
Should the publication be responsible for a reporting error, it will use twice the
amount of space to print a correction. Advertising rates and information are
available upon request. The Victims’ Advocate retains the right to refuse questionable or offensive advertising as deemed by the publication and will not be
held liable for false claims by an advertiser(s). Advertiser purchases right of
publication only.
A Comprehensive Plan
to Help Kids and Prevent Crime
By Mayor Alvin Brown
One of the best ways to
keep our community safe is
by all of us working together to provide children
with the positive opportunities and support they
need to thrive and follow
the right path in life. At the
City of Jacksonville’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Day Breakfast on January 16, I announced a comprehensive series of crime prevention and intervention strategies to help Jacksonville’s young
people stay out of trouble. These strategies involve a broad-based partnership with faith leaders, nonprofit organizations, businesses, parks,
youth sports, law enforcement and the juvenile
justice system.
Here are the highlights:
To give teens a safe place to gather with adult
supervision when school is out, we will seek to
re-open five community centers (Blue Cypress,
Joe James, Lew Brantley, Lewis-Cobb and Westside) for afterschool and summer programs. We
will also work to extend the hours of operation at
another center (Johnnie Walker).
We will expand our successful Urban Parks
Initiative (Rec ’N Roll Jax) to provide adult-supervised recreation opportunities at a total of 18 sites
this summer.
With youth sports organizations, we will develop a Youth Sports Initiative to implement best
practices to promote personal accountability and
sportsmanship among the 20,000 young athletes
who participate every year in organized sports activities at the city’s public parks.
With JAX Chamber, we will ask more local
businesses to provide summer job opportunities
for teens so they can get real-world work experience and begin preparing for future careers.
With our law enforcement and juvenile justice
partners, we will help young offenders turn their
lives around by adding a Neighborhood Accountability Board site in Arlington and establishing an
Evening Reporting Center as a constructive alternative to detention.
We will recruit faith leaders to mentor young
people, serve as “pastoral interrupters” to counsel
against retaliatory violence and coordinate citywide messages at worship services around common themes like ending the silence that protects
wrongdoers.
Finally, we will organize a series of Community Empowerment Days to bring private, nonprofit and faith-based service providers to local
neighborhoods to connect families with needed
services.
Dr. King taught us that we must always keep
the faith. Scripture tells us that “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things
not seen.” But when we combine faith with good
works, we can see the evidence. We can see it in
the safety and success of our kids, as well as the
safety and success of our whole community.
All correspondence to the Justice Coalition’s Victims’ Advocate should be sent to:
1935 Lane Ave. South, Suite 1 • Jacksonville, Florida 32210
Phone: (904) 783-6312 • Fax: (904) 783-4172
[email protected]
THE JUSTICE COALITION’S OBJECTIVES
• To be available for innocent victims of violent crime
• To educate the general public on criminal justice issues
• To be pro-active in the fight against crime
NEEDS YOUR HELP
to locate these children
Advertising Deadline
The deadline for advertising copy for the
May 2015 Edition of the
JUSTICE COALITION’S
VICTIMS’ ADVOCATE
is
April 15, 2015.
Angela Jennings
Missing since 3/7/2014
THE SECRET
WORD GAME
Brandy Vest
Missing since 1/12/2015
CONGRATULATIONS TO MARCH WINNER,
TAMIKA ROBINSON
Hidden in the text of the Victims’ Advocate is the SECRET WORD
for the month of April. The rules are simple:
1. Find the word.
2. Telephone the Justice Coalition office 783-6312.
3. The first person who telephones the correct Secret Word wins a
Gift Certificate to Sonny’s Real Pit Barbeque Restaurant.
4. You can only win once in a twelve-month period.
SO START SEARCHING!
Exclusions: no persons employed by the Justice Coalition, Sonny’s nor their familes are eligible.
Arreana Morse
Missing since 1/28/2015
4 • THE JUSTICE COALITION’S VICTIMS’ ADVOCATE
Qwuanell Jones
Missing since 3/10/2015
Abria Berrian
Missings since 2/16/2015
Have you seen them? If so, please contact our
Missing Child Specialist at (904) 418-5813
APRIL 2015