UNSOLVED HOMICIDE AMBASSADORS
On Wednesday, Aug. 19, the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s Unsolved Homicide Ambassadors gathered for their regularly monthly meeting. The Ambassadors — a survivor-led group whose loved ones were murdered and whose cases remain unresolved — shared their experiences navigating their loved ones cases and interacting with the criminal legal system, and discussed the issues they want the next Suffolk County District Attorney to address.
As a result of that meeting, we provided the campaigns of all three candidates for Suffolk District Attorney — incumbent Kevin Hayden and challengers Rachael Rollins and Linda Champion — a statement from the Unsolved Homicide Ambassadors, individual statements from several of the survivors, and five reports developed through the Peace Institute’s partnership with Northeastern University School of Law. We also sent each candidate the following questions:
1. Communication with Families: If elected, what specific process will you establish to ensure that every family living with an unresolved homicide has a clearly identified point of contact and receives meaningful communication about their loved one’s case, even when there is no new investigative development?
2. Unresolved Homicide Cases: What is your plan for reviewing and prioritizing unresolved homicide cases in Suffolk County, including cases that are ten, twenty, or thirty years old? Please describe what resources, staffing, partnerships, or investigative practices you believe are necessary to strengthen this work.
3. Accountability and Oversight: How will you determine whether unresolved homicide cases are receiving appropriate investigative attention? What accountability or review process will you establish so that a family does not go years without knowing whether anyone is actively reviewing their loved one’s case?
4. Survivor Rights, Preparation, and Notification: How will your office ensure that survivors understand their rights and are informed and prepared before significant developments involving their loved one’s case, including appeals, parole matters, plea agreements, changes in law, post conviction proceedings, possible exonerations, or other major decisions?
5. Wrongful Convictions and the Continuing Search for Truth: When credible questions arise about whether the person convicted of a homicide was actually responsible, how will your office protect the integrity of the conviction review process while also ensuring that the murdered person’s family is informed, supported, and included? If a conviction is overturned or determined to be wrongful, what responsibility does the District Attorney’s Office have to help determine who actually committed the homicide?
6. Unsolved Firearm Homicides: Many unresolved homicides involve firearms. What specific strategies will you pursue to strengthen the investigation and prosecution of unresolved firearm homicides, particularly cases in which DNA evidence may not be available?
7. Your Commitment to Survivors: We have heard promises before. If elected Suffolk County District Attorney, what is one concrete commitment you are willing to make to families living with unresolved homicide? Please tell us how that commitment will be implemented, how survivors will know whether it is being fulfilled, and how your office will be held accountable for carrying it out.
This communication with the candidates was not an endorsement process, and we make no endorsement. Rather, it was an opportunity for survivors to help candidates understand how the criminal legal system is experienced by families living with homicide, trauma, uncertainty, and loss. The Ambassadors are not asking candidates to influence individual investigations or diminish the constitutional rights of accused or convicted people. They are asking how the Suffolk District Attorney, over the next term, will ensure meaningful communication, preparation, dignity, transparency, continuity, accountability, and respectful partnership with families throughout the lifetime of a homicide case.
We asked the candidates to respond in writing or with a recorded response. Below are their responses:
Response from Kevin Hayden (Incumbent)
It has been my honor and privilege to serve as the District Attorney for Suffolk County for the past four plus years and to have dedicated my entire career to working within the criminal legal system to serve our communities. If you’ve followed me on this campaign trail, you have heard me say that we are unapologetic that we support victims, witnesses and survivors even in their darkest moments. I understand that our comprehensive public safety strategy must include community healing and survivor-centered response.
I appreciate the opportunity to share my thoughts with you, but I recognize that it would prove quite difficult to answer all the questions posed within the suggested limit. While this response may be at more a cursory level than I would prefer, I will still make my best attempt to address specific questions. That being said, my spirit has led me to respond with two concrete commitments that I know are both feasible and can make a real difference.
First, I am fully committed to working with Senator Liz Miranda and Rep. Russell Holmes to get an Unsolved Homicide Bill passed in the legislature. One thing I’ve learned in my career is that the vital, mission-driven goals that we truly need to make our communities better and safer requires resources. Without the resources to do better on unsolved homicides, we’re left to exercise our faith without the means to carry out the good works that faith calls us to do. I am not simply referencing increasing our clearance rate in unsolved tragedies here (although we will certainly endeavor to do that). What we need is a comprehensive homicide survivor bill that also addresses survivor response, communication and sustained outreach, accountability and oversight, and (frankly) much better, victim/survivor/witness protection, financial support and relocation services. I have had conversations with Senator Miranda and Representative Holmes and many others. I have the strong relationships with, and have earned the respect of, the key stakeholders both in government and community to help get real and effective legislation passed.
Second, I will commit to meeting regularly with the Unsolved Homicide Ambassadors and other specifically interested stakeholders – a promise in line with our current practices in the DA’s Office. We meet with organizations regularly with an array of public service agencies, organizations and stakeholders. So regardless of obtaining additional resources, we can and will do that with your Ambassadors.
Another thing I have learned over my career is that statements of good intentions, or even the creation of good strategies, are never enough. It is only through sustained collaborative efforts – even through struggle and tension – that true results come to fruition. For example, if we want to truly address how we best support survivors in circumstances of wrongful convictions and the continued search for the truth, that will require some real longer-term conversations about how and when it will be done.
Additionally, if we acknowledge that one size does not fit all, we will have to have some real longer-term conversations about how we truly sustain communications and outreach with families. Lastly, our administration launched Unsolved Homicide Virtual Campaign. Together I am confident we can find ways to expand that campaign and make it more effective.
As some of you may know, Natasha Carrington and I have somehow developed a bit of a unique bond. I have told her before, “I see you!” To every person connected and dedicated to the Unsolved Homicide Ambassadors please know I see you! As I have endeavored to do during my first term in every area, please know that I will work tirelessly to do better, to enlarge in scope and effectiveness for how we address unsolved homicides and meet the needs of our survivors.
Response from Rachael Rollins (VIDEO)
Response from Linda Champion
Attorney Champion entered the race on 4/7. Since entering, she was happy to meet many of [the] families at the Mother’s Day Walk and more during [the Peace B’Que] in the park. We received the questionnaire last Friday the night before polls opened. Right now we are in the throes of early voting week and the days are from 7 am to 10 pm. It is impossible to respond in any meaningful way to the questionnaire. If successful on 9/1, the questionnaire will be completed and submitted by 9/7.