Tylee and JJ’s Memorial
On April 27 my wife, a fellow juror and myself took the 4 hour drive to Idaho Falls to attend the memorial. It took place in the downtown at the beautiful Colonial Theatre and was attended by over 200 people.
It was a moving ceremony of their lives to say the least. The most poignant moment for me was when Larry sat on the stage by the picture of JJ and talked about his time with JJ. So many other moments that I will never forget. Listening to JJ’s biological father and Kay’s son Todd’s phone call from prison where he is serving his time, I hope in a positive way. We need Todd to overcome his demons and help fight our battle to not only get justice in the case we are in the middle of now, but also to help other children in danger.
Seeing JJ’s M & Ms jacket brought tears to my eyes as did seeing Tylee’s pictures of her and her friends.
I got to meet in person for the first time Lori’s brother Adam and Uncle Rex. I already knew these guys well, but it felt great to get hugs from them.
I also had the opportunity to talk to Chad’s brother, Matt and his wife, Heather. Both are people who I have been hoping to talk to, but this wasn’t the time for interviews and it felt really nice just to be able to have a conversation with them and so many others without the pressure of trying to get information from them to help with my book.
I also get to talk to Lori’s cousin, Megan Connor. She sang four songs to us, one of which was Ave Maria. Megan has an amazing voice and hearing her sing was a privilege I won’t forget.
I am thankful for all of these people for having the guts to put themselves out there. They could easily just hide away and who could blame them. Instead they choose to take the risk of the criticism they might receive, as unfair as that might be. They are as much living victims of the horrible crimes as anyone. They have lost people who they love. They are in no way to blame, unlike Chad and Lori’s inner circle of friends.
I didn’t take any pictures. I didn’t need to. The images are burnt into my mind. There are pictures and video all over the internet if you want to see them and I recommend you do.
Back in court at 8:30am tomorrow and back to work seeking justice, answers, and a way to keep children in our communities safe from people like Chad and Lori who are still out there.
