Vianey, you are just the sort of person the Sullivan Ballou Fund seeks to recognized and affirm. You are a remarkable young person who has achieved great things in a very short time because your heart has led you from the traumas of your own childhood to helping the voiceless and forgotten children who, like you, have been disenfranchised and left behind.
You were unjustly accused of a crime when you were only 15 years old. You were not a rebellious teen; in fact, you were part of your school’s band and had above-average grades. Unfortunately, you were given a ride to a party by friends in a car that had been reported as stolen. The police presumed you also were guilty of the vianeytheft, and you were taken away from your family and sent to a juvenile detention center.
You spent 10 months in detention while the investigation was ongoing, and eventually you were sentenced to two years in detention. At that point you were charged with stealing parts of cars that were found in the stolen car. Rather than facing a sentence of four more years, you took your lawyer’s advice and pleaded guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence of one and a half more years.
While in detention you met many girls who were also innocent. Life for you and the other girls was hard. You were subject to abusive behavior from the supervising adults at the detention center. Although inmates had to purchase personal hygiene products and food from the dispensary, all the girls came from impoverished communities and many did not receive money from their families. There were almost no activities, so the girls spent most of the time just letting the time pass. Most of the girls did not receive visits from their families because in Mexico women who end up behind bars are stigmatized and their families leave them to their “deserved” punishment.
Rather than becoming embittered, all these injustices led you to determine that this was something you needed to help correct. When you finished your sentence, you decided to finish school and then go on to law school.
You will graduate in December!
Juvenile Justice Advocates International learned about you and was so inspired by your life and your will to change a broken system that they immediately hired you as their permanent intern.
JJAI has told us that you are a true inspiration to all of their staff and to the many young girls and boys who have gone through the same hardships that you did.You are currently leading the Case Speeding Task Force project in Chihuahua, which works to shorten detention times by providing information on detention time and delays. So far the project has aided approximately 150 children.
Vianey, we are delighted to be able to recognize your big heart, your triumph over the past, and the inspiration you provide to others who know you have walked the same walk as they have. Thank you for what you are doing.Congratulations!
Elissa and Bruce Peterson, Founding Members