Selection of Facility Liaisons for Victim Services
The “Fallen” within the Correctional Family
Victims’ Rights Day at the Capitol - April 21, 2010
Stop Youth Violence before it starts - Bullying Prevalence
Volunteers in Victim Services
The needs of victims which we hope to address in the Victim Services Unit
are many. The programs we are developing to address those needs will demand
a lot of work from skilled, compassionate people. Even before the current
budget crisis hit our state government and forced significant reductions
in staffing, we realized that we would not be able to accomplish all that
we hope without strong support from volunteers.
Volunteers have always had a vital role in corrections. We currently have
thousands of volunteers working throughout the state providing programs and
services. With the agency’s new focus on Victim Services we will need
to, once again, call on caring, dedicated people who want to make a difference.
We want to recruit and train volunteers to help in various different roles
within victim services, such as:
• Providing Impact of Crime Programs at each of our facilities
• Facilitating Victim/Offender Dialogue
• Facilitating Victim/Offender Mediation
• Helping with Community Awareness and Advocacy Projects
Volunteers can come from anywhere. Many come from faith-based or community
organizations that want to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
Student Internship is another form of volunteering. We currently have two
student interns volunteering in our Victim Services Unit. We also have many
retired members of society that want an opportunity to give back, on a schedule
that fits in with their other goals and plans.
The Oklahoma Department of Corrections tries to make becoming a volunteer
as easy as possible. Once you have determined as area of service you would
like to be involved with, you submit our one page Volunteer Application Form
and an Authorization to Release Information form to the Volunteer Services
Unit. After your application is approved, you will be contacted to set up
your training. Volunteer Training is offered at regional locations all across
our state.
If you think you might be interested in volunteering or know someone who
might be interested please contact Ilinda Jackson, Victim Services Coordinator,
at 405-962-6142.
Selection of Facility Liaisons for Victim Services
ODOC correctional facilities across the state have identified staff that
will help assist the Victim Services Unit from the facility level. Facility
liaisons will help provide valuable services to victims from the field.
In times past the role of the contact person at the facility level was very
limited, primarily to passing on information about the offender to the victim.
As we are re-implementing victim services, following the approved recommendations
from the final quality assurance report. It is part of our goal to have the
facility liaison not only provide needed information and direction but be
able to engage a number of services for the victim or survivor of a crime.
This person would be responsible in the following ways:
• A contact person at the facility
• Facilitator for potential victim offender dialogue & mediation
• Offender education-Impact of Crime classes
A primary need for any victims is safety and awareness, when victims contact
a facility calls will be directed to the facility liaison, the facility liaison
will be able to provide information for safety and emotional well being as
well as make referrals when appropriate to victims and their families. With
liaisons at each facility victims are able to obtain information and support
in a sensitive and timely matter.
Facility liaisons will help to provide awareness and education that is offered
to offenders to learn about the impact of their crime on victims. These programs
focus on the following;
• Crime Violence and Victimization Overview
• Personal Responsibility & Restorative Justice
• Making Amends & Restitution
The victim liaison will participate in the Restorative Justice Process, victim
offender mediation and victim offender dialogue. Facility liaisons will have
a scheduled time of training ensuring a consistent approach to addressing
victim issues and the work associated with Victim Services.
Oklahoma Correctional Employee Memorial Foundation Memorial Service - May 5, 2010 - The “Fallen” within the Correctional Family.
We in Corrections, work in a world within the world that is unique from
any other.
This world has numerous challenges and demands; but, for the Correctional
Professional, they are enhanced a million times further!
The Military, the Firemen and the Police-protect and serve the community.
They choose these careers, they serve with their lives-they serve without
fears!
Corrections is a profession likened in comparison to no other.
It is a family unit that cannot survive without trust of your sister or your
brother!
No matter what position is held in Corrections, it is a career that is worthy-despite
the imperfections.
It is a career, it is a profession, and women serve without hesitations.
Corrections-the work demands are high and the risks are great.
Corrections-a place where men and women daily test their faith.
In the line of duty-brave women and men answered their calling.
The brave, The “Fallen” will be forever remembered and missed-forever
held in our hearts’ list.
The military, the Firemen, the Police and the Correctional professional strive
daily to protect, serve and teach.
The love and memories of the “Fallen” are always within the heart’s
reach-they are FAMILY!
May GOD embrace them ALL and bless them with ETERNAL PEACE.
Poem By: Beverly Henderson, Senior Probation Officer III.
Victims’ Rights Day at the Capitol - April 21, 2010
The Honorable W.A. Drew Edmondson, Attorney General, State of Oklahoma:
Drew Edmondson was elected Attorney General in 1994, and was re-elected in
1998, 2002 and 2006, winning more than 60 percent of the vote in his last
two elections.
Edmondson served as the 2002-2003 President of the National Association of
Attorneys General. In 1996, Edmondson filed suit against the tobacco industry
resulting in a $2 billion settlement between the industry and Oklahoma, part
of the largest settlement in the history of the world. Edmondson was one
of eight attorneys general asked to serve on the negotiating team for the
states.
Under his leadership the attorney general’s office has helped reform
the death penalty appeals process, established victims’ services, and
vigorously represented rate payers in telephone, gas and electric rate cases.
In 2005, Edmondson, on behalf of the State of Oklahoma, filed suit against
more than a dozen poultry companies. The lawsuit, which was filed after years
of negotiations, accuses the companies of creating runoff into the Illinois
River Watershed as a result of their waste dumping practices.
Before his election as Attorney General, Edmondson was elected, unopposed,
to three consecutive terms as Muskogee County District Attorney in 1982,
1986 and 1990. He served as president of the Oklahoma District Attorneys
Association and was selected as Outstanding District Attorney for the State
of Oklahoma in 1985 and the
Outstanding Death Penalty Prosecutor in the 9th and 10th Circuits.
Edmondson served one term in the Oklahoma Legislature before entering the
University of Tulsa School of Law in 1976. His undergraduate teaching degree
is from Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, which he attended after
graduating form Muskogee Central High School.
Edmondson is a Navy veteran with a tour of duty in Vietnam. He is a member
of the Oklahoma Bar Association, the Presbyterian Church and the Democratic
Party.
Drew’s wife, Linda, is a medical social worker. They have two children:
Mary is an attorney and Robert is pursuing a doctorate in cultural anthropology.
Jari Askins, Lieutenant Governor:
Born and reared in Duncan, Oklahoma, Jari Askins was sworn in as Oklahoma’s
15th Lieutenant Governor in 2007, giving her the rare distinction of being
involved in public service in all three branches of government.
Lieutenant Governor Askins received her BA in Journalism from the University
of Oklahoma and earned a juris doctorate from the OU College of Law. She
served as Special District Judge for the District Court of Stephens County
for eight years, from 1982-1990. In 1991, the Governor appointed her to the
Pardon and Parole Board, which elected her as its first woman Chairman. She
later served as Executive Director of the Pardon and Parole Board and as
Deputy General Counsel to the Governor.
Askins was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives in 1994 from
District 50, and served for twelve years, earning the position of Democratic
House Leader in 2005. She won statewide election as Lieutenant Governor in
2006, becoming the first Democratic woman to serve in that office.
As Lieutenant Governor, Askins is President of the State Senate. She also
serves on numerous boards and commissions and chairs the Oklahoma Tourism
and Recreation Commission and the Oklahoma Film and Music Advisory Commission.
She is an advocate for children and for greater efficiency in government.
She also served as Oklahoma’s Small Business Advocate. She participates
in various economic development projects and supports legislation and innovative
means of providing greater hope and opportunity for Oklahoma’s citizens.
Susan Krug, Governor’s Commendation Award:
Excerpt form Nomination Form: I have had the honor and privilege to work with Susan Krug for the past 5
years. She became Unit Chief July 1, 2005. Since that time she had been instrumental
in enhancing victim services state wide. Susan administers certification
for family violence and batterers intervention programs; victim notification
programs; Address Confidentiality Program; Domestic Violence Fatality Review
Board; State Wide training on violence against women and statewide hot line
for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Her latest project is
developing the Oklahoma Victim’s Academy where all disciplines who
work with victims can receive training.
Susan began her victims’ advocacy work when she worked at the District
Attorneys Council. She returned to working on behalf of victims when she
became unit chief in 2005. When it was announced that Susan was the first
unit chief for the newly formed victims services unit, I called and congratulated
her. She told me she was so excited to be able to be involved working on
behalf of victims again. She said “I feel like I am coming home.”
Susan is most deserving of the Governors Commendation Award. She is so dedicated
to her work on behalf of victims. She has demonstrated outstanding efforts
in assisting victims and holding offenders accountable. She truly is Oklahoma’s “Victims
Advocate.”
Tressia Meeks, Governor’s Commendation Award:
Excerpt from Nomination Form: I would like to nominate Tressia Meeks for the Governor’s Commendation
for her exceptional contributions and the extraordinary impact she has had
on her community and State since becoming a survivor on Christmas Eve, 1999.
On this day, Tressia and her family’s life was forever changed by the
act of a person who chose to drive a vehicle while under the influence of
alcohol and drugs. Her family was on their way to celebrate Christmas with
their family in Anadarko when a drunk driver hit their vehicle from behind.
Her son, nine year old Ren Meeks did not survive.
There were numerous obstacles Tressia had to endure during her journey through
the criminal justice system. She found out quickly the system was not always
kind nor held accountable to victims. The offender who killed her son had
a lengthy criminal record which included rehabilitation opportunities as
well as incarceration. She dealt with the criminal justice system with class
and dignity. She has dedicated her life to making a positive impact on victim’s
coping with a loss and has also tried to make sure other offenders did not
travel down the same path as the man who killed her son. Tressia shares her
personal tragedy by being a regular speaker at schools, civil clubs and victim
impact panels.
For the past 10 years Tressia has exhibited exceptional perseverance in dealing
with her personal tragedy. She works tirelessly on behalf of victims and
is dedicated to making changes in the justice system to help others. Her
determination to keep drunk drivers off the road is shown each time she compassionately
speaks at a Victim Impact Panel. For 10 years, Tressia and her family have
actively participated in Tree of Honor and Remembrance and the Victims Rights
Day at the Capitol.
Tressia Meeks is a woman of compassion with a kind spirit who works tirelessly
to help others understand what it means to be a survivor and how drinking
and driving can lead to tragedy. Her courage, leadership and outreach efforts
have truly made a difference in many peoples’ lives. For these and
numerous other reasons, Tressia is deserving of this award.
Stop Youth Violence before it starts - Bullying Prevalence
Almost 30% of youth in the United States (or over 5.7 million) are estimated
to be involved in bullying as either a bully, a target of bullying, or both.
In a recent national survey of students in grades 6-10, 13% reported bullying
others, 11% reported being the target of bullies, and another 6% said that
they bullied others and were bullied themselves.
Male vs. female
Bullying takes on different forms in male and female youth. While both male
and female youth say that others bully them by making fun of the way they
look or talk, males are more likely to report being hit, slapped, or pushed.
Female youth are more likely than males to report being the targets of rumors
and sexual comments. While male youth target both boys and girls, female
youth most often bully other girls, using more subtle and indirect forms
of aggression than boys. For example, instead of physically harming others,
they are more likely to spread gossip or encourage others to reject or exclude
another girl.
Facts
• Among students, homicide perpetrators were more than twice as likely
as homicide victims to have been bullied by peers.
• Bullying statistics say revenge is the strongest motivation for school
shootings.
• 87% of students said shootings are motivated by a desire to “get
back at those who have hurt them.”
• 86% of students said, “other kids picking them, making fun of
them or bullying them” causes teenagers to turn to lethal violence
in the schools.
• Bulling statistics shows that those who bully and are bullied appear
to be at greatest risk of experiencing the following: loneliness; trouble
making friends; lack of success in school; and involvement in problem behaviors
such as smoking and drinking.
• 61% said students shoot others because they have been victims of physical
abuse at home.
• 54% said witnessing physical abuse at home can lead to violence in
school.
• According to bullying statistics, one out of every 10 students who
drops out of school does so because of repeated bullying.
• Harassment and bullying have been linked to 75 percent of school-shooting
incidents.
