Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón has established the office’s first Crime Victims Advisory Board comprised of members who will advise him on best practices for helping victims of crime become survivors.
“Supporting victims in their journey to becoming survivors is fundamental to community safety. When a person has been harmed, wronged or experienced loss at the hands of another, they need justice and healing,” Gascón said. “The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office will pursue a system of parallel justice, where we not only seek legal prosecution for the offenders but also provide support services for victims in their evolution to becoming survivors.”
Previously, Gascón announced new policies that no longer required victims to testify in order to receive victim services. He also said his office would immediately begin extending services to families of those killed by law enforcement. Crime Victims Advisory Board members include:
• LaNaisha Edwards, who works with the Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice as the Los Angeles Chapter Coordinator and is a lead case manager at the Volunteers of America GRYD program. She recently cofounded United Communities for Peace and The Sister Circle Women Empowerment Group. Edward’s younger brother was murdered in 2010, followed by another brother’s murder in 2016.
• Susan Hess, MSW, LSCW-IL, is a clinical associate professor at USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. She is an advocate, consultant and relational organizer within the intersections of intimate partner violence through a trauma informed healing centered approach. Hess is the cofounder of Trauma Informed LA, whose mission is to foster resilient communities that promote healing and wellbeing through collaboration, education and community engagement. She has experienced intimate partner violence.
• Enako Major currently serves as an advocate for the Jireh-Shalom Foundation, Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice California and many other community organizations. Major is a survivor of childhood domestic, teenager domestic, gang and gun violence.
• Patricia Ramirez, DSW, MSW, is the founder of the Healing Justice Transformative Leadership Institute. Ramirez has been a transnational social worker for nearly a decade. Her experience ranges from working with the immigrant and refugee populations, violence prevention, criminal justice policy advocacy and reproductive justice. She is a healing justice consultant and a core steering committee leader of Trauma Informed Los Angeles.
• Skipp Townsend is cofounder and executive director of 2nd Call, a community-based organization designed to save lives by reducing violence and assisting in the personal development of high-risk individuals, proven offenders, ex-felons, parolees and others. Townsend is a gang expert and former documented Bloods gang member for more than 27 years.
• Rebecca Weiker, MPH, is program director at Restore Justice, where she develops and implements programs for survivors, responsible parties and formerly incarcerated individuals. A survivor of violent crime after her sister was murdered, Weiker manages the organization’s Victim Offender Dialogue Program.
