Office of the Fayette Commonwealth's Attorney

By Blerina Gojani

On Friday June 11, 2010, I visited a Safe House in my hometown of Gjakova. The goal of the Safe House is to prevent violence against women and girls and also to rehabilitate women who have been victims of violence with the intention to integrate them back to normal life. Safe House is a shelter for the victims of domestic violence, more precisely of mothers and their children. This shelter house was created due to the need, at a time when the war in Kosovo ended and consequences of which have put more burden in the shoulders of women. Read more »

Ask any family member of a murder victim what they think should happen to the gun that was used to murder their loved one, and they will all same the same thing.

Read more »

“It should be called the ‘CRIMINAL SYSTEM’ because there is no ‘JUSTICE’ in it,” say many victims of crime about our court system and the way it treats victims.

That was the theme of the 5th Annual “Second-Class Citizens” Luncheon sponsored by the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorneys Office held on April 19, 2010, to commemorate National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. Read more »

What do you suppose a homeowner would say after the conviction of a repeat offender who was found in possession of a watch stolen out of his home?

“We feel better knowing that fellow will be off the streets for a while to come.”

It is well-known that a relatively small percentage of repeat offenders commit the majority of the crimes in our community. Criminals who steal over and over from cars, homes, and businesses and dispose of the property in area pawnshops or on the street are particularly well-known to the Lexington Police Department. Read more »

Ask any family member of a murder victim what they think should happen to the gun that was used to murder their loved one, and they will all same the same thing.

Read more »

 “I have nightmares all the time of him attacking me all over again,
and I wake up screaming and crying. I am very afraid.”
Crime victim describing the affect a crime has had on her life.

Defendant Antonio Smither

The media tells us all about the Criminal.
They almost never talk about what happened to the Victim.
So . . . We’re going to tell you the rest of the story.

Seldom is the “rest of the story” or what happened to the victim ever told or heard or even mentioned when crimes are reported by the “main-stream-media.” They always seem to focus on the criminal.

Victim’s Voice wants to change all that. We intend to tell the public exactly what these convicted criminals did, and how their crimes have affected the lives of these innocent victims. Read more »

By Gail Whitt

In 1982 President Ronald Reagan called upon our nation to take better care of crime victims.  Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney Ray Larson responded.  He sought to restore faith in the criminal justice system and give crime victims a voice they were never given before.  More than 25 years later we are still working to improve the plight of crime victims. Read more »

Victim’s Voice is a new blog which will become a regular part of the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office webpage.  Contributors will include local and national Victim’s Advocates, and, most importantly, crime victims.

But first, a little history about crime victims and their treatment by the criminal justice system in America. Read more »

By Gail A. Whitt

Emily Burns

With the holiday season upon us, the decision to build a Habitat for Humanity house was an easy one for JMBA, Inc.  JMBA, a Lexington general contracting company, was founded by Mike and Emily Burns.  Mike and Emily lost their 21-year-old son, Bran, in July, 1991 from a senseless violent attack perpetrated by a juvenile.  Disappointed with the criminal justice system due to a weak juvenile justice code, Emily became an activist for crime victims’ rights in Kentucky.  She continued to help raise awareness of equal rights for crime victims until her untimely death in May, 2008. Read more »