Burned woman was mother of three
SOUTH SIDE Body of 2nd victim identified, family gets the news
BY ANNIE SWEENEY Staff Reporter/asweeney@suntimes.com

Authorities have identified the second of two women found strangled and burned in South Side garbage containers last week.

Hazel Lewis, 52, was identified by dental records Friday afternoon, according to Chicago Police.
Reached Friday, Lewis' family said relatives had received the news and were gathering together. Lewis, her family said, was the mother of three children.
"She was a great mother," said her daughter, who declined to give her name.

The daughter said the family had no information as to what could have happened to her mother.
"We didn't know anything until the detectives contacted us," she said.

Lewis' body was found Nov. 14 in the 800 block of East 50th Street.
The gruesome discovery came two days after the body of another African-American woman was found on the South Side. The body of Theresa Bunn, 21, who was eight months pregnant, had been found in the 6100 block of South Prairie.

Both murders remain under investigation, with detectives trying to determine if they are related.

Theresa Bunn

Theresa Bunn, R.I.P.

Cops Identify Burned Body Of Pregnant Woman

Police Flock In After 2 Strangled, Charred Bodies Found Near Each Other On South Side

CHICAGO (CBS) ― Police late Thursday afternoon identified one of the two women found strangled and burned on the South Side. The family was holding out hope it was not their loved one. As CBS 2's Rafael Romo reports, 21-year-old Theresa Bunn had been missing since Monday, when she told her mother she was meeting a friend at the mall. "She never did make it," Bunn's mother, Rosemary Williams said Wednesday night. "She said she was going to call us about eight o'clock. She never did call. So I haven't heard nothing from her or seen her." Chicago police confirmed Thursday afternoon Bunn's body is the one found in a dumpster in a vacant lot near 61st Street and Prairie Avenue on Monday, just before midnight.

"Theresa Bunn's family was contacted by detectives from our special victim's unit yesterday," said Deputy Chief Michael Shields of the Detective Division. Police say the body was burned beyond recognition. Detectives had to use dental records to positively identify the victim, who was eight months pregnant. "She was just staying here [at home], living with me and trying to go through her pregnancy," Williams said of her daughter. Williams said her daughter was expecting a boy, whom she planned to name Michael after her younger brother.

The body of a second woman found about 1 a.m. Tuesday in a dumpster behind Reavis Elementary, 834 E. 60th St., remains unidentified. "There are common denominators in both of the homicides in that both of the victims were found strangled and both of the victims were found burnt beyond recognition," Shields said.

A roll call for officers of the Third and 21st Districts was conducted Thursday morning at 61st Street and Prairie Avenue, where Bunn's body was found. As police conducted roll call near the Prairie Avenue location, a commanding officer instructed his subordinates to go door to door and ask if anyone had seen anything, and show them a flier they are distributing about the cases. They hope to solve the macabre double mystery. Police have yet to link the two cases due to lack of forensic evidence. "It's a concern for every woman that something like this happened in the area," said area resident Henrietta Limehouse. "You know, you're very concerned, very worried, because I have to walk the streets myself." Police say they have been talking to other people who have missing relatives in an effort to identify the second body.

Detectives collected several items as evidence at the site where the body was found, but so far they have no suspects. There is no description of a suspect. Anyone with information on either of the cases is urged to call police.

Dear Mr. Jesus

Japan Today - News - New York police kill teenager armed with hairbrush

Japan Today - News - New York police kill teenager armed with hairbrush: "NEW YORK — New York police shot and killed an 18-year-old youth armed with only a hairbrush, U.S. media reported Tuesday. Khiel Coppin was shot late Monday after a violent confrontation with his mother, who had called police for help, according to The New York Times. While she was on the phone, Coppin screamed that he had a gun and was going to kill her, the paper said. When police arrived, Coppin had jumped out of a ground-floor window with something in his hand and was shot by officers on the street."

Sherrice Iverson - 1989-1997

Sherrice Iverson was a 7 year old whose life was taken in a senseless murder in 1997 in a casino. The thief who stole her life and innocence was tried on Court TV. The lesson here is that we MUST watch over our children with vigilence. "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..." (John 10:10). Sherrice, we love you and will see you again. Love forever -

Memphis battling infant death epidemic - Kids and parenting- msnbc.com

Memphis battling infant death epidemic - Kids and parenting- msnbc.com: "Twice the U.S. average A 2002 federal report put this city at the top of the list for infant deaths in American cities: 692 dead babies over a four-year span, a rate of more than 15 deaths for every 1,000 births, more than twice the U.S. average. Broken down by ZIP code, centering on the poorest places in this very poor city, there are spots where babies die at a higher rate than they do in some Third World countries. Some health officials object to that characterization because the figures are small enough to call their statistical significance into question. But no one denies that there is an epidemic of dead babies here."

STATEMENT ON THE CASE OF MEGAN WILLIAMS

Thanks, Brownfemipower for bringing this to the fore. As I wrote in reply to this, . Violence against women of Color is a serious problem in society today. Meghan Williams is among many WOC who are victims of hate crime. The victim and her son in the Dunbar Village gender hate crime needs to be acknowleged in the general public as well. The Newark Ladies who were arrested in NY after being assaulted by a bigot deserves our sympathy. The Black woman in Missouri who was the victim of police brutality deserves our sympathy.


WEST VIRGINIA COALITION AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE WOMEN OF COLOR CAUCUSSTATEMENT ON THE CASE OF MEGAN WILLIAMS
October 1, 2007

We, the Women of Color Caucus of the West Virginia Coalition of DomesticViolence, stand in solidarity with allies and in partnership with TonyaLovelace of the national Women of Color Network from Harrisburg,Pennsylvania, and issue this statement of concern for Megan Williams andoutrage for the crimes committed against her person.

Megan Williams, a resident of Charleston, West Virginia, was a victim ofdomestic and sexual violence as well as a victim of hate crimes based onrace and gender. In addition, Megan is a victim of the criminal justicesystem, of the media and of the community at large, all of whom failed toacknowledge the fullness of her humanity as a woman of color, as a womanwith a disability, and as a young woman who experienced extreme torture,dehumanization and gang rape.

We are concerned that the criminal justice system failed her by bringing hercase of bad checks into the media at the time of Megan’s initial recovery.While she may have some charges of her own to contend with, the timing ofMegan’s public arraignment served only to downplay the violence sheexperienced and diverted attention away from the central issue of hersurviving atrocious crimes perpetrated by offenders in callous disregard forher safety. Many women exposed to violence have criminal histories oftenaccumulated as a result of being connected to an abusive partner. Megan’svictimization must remain central in the media as well as in the systemsthat claim to “serve and protect” her and other victims of violence.

We as women of color and allies in West Virginia identify Megan as asurvivor and as a woman who represents dozens of women of color who aremistreated, mishandled, disrespected and often dehumanized across this stateand across the country. Violence against women of color is often viewedwithin the context of stereotypes held by police officers, attorneys, judgesand even advocates. Women of color may express anger at the scene; may havelittle money; may have several children; and may fulfill every stereotype.But regardless of life circumstances, women of color deserve support,assistance, protection and fairness.

We believe that the crimes committed against Megan are rooted in racism, sexism, and ableism. All women must be, heard, acknowledged and treated withdignity and respect by the criminal justice systems and all other systemsseeking to address violence against women. Violence against women must betaken seriously or there will be more Megans who will suffer at the hands ofothers whose bias-motivated behaviors inflict great harm. As such, we arelooking for accountability for those who hurt her, for due process, and foreach and every person to evaluate themselves and see what each of us can doto make a difference and to see where we may have collectively failed Megan.

We are calling upon each of you to take a stand on gender and raciallymotivated crime. We are calling for legal reform that recognizes theinterplay of hateful gender and racial epithets uttered during thecommission of violent crimes committed against those of protected classes.We are calling for the media to offer fair portrayals of victims and to beresponsible in seeking multiple voices. We are calling for the criminaljustice system as a whole to take violence against women seriously and tohold batterers accountable for their actions. We are calling for advocatesto integrate violence against women of color and other marginalized groupsinto the heart of the work of creating safety in communities around thestate and across the nation. We are calling for men to check male privilegeand engage in the work of ending male violence against women. And finally,we call upon women of color and people of color to stand up, be heard, andoffer support to Megan and her family. With all of us working together, wecan bring the issue of violence against women and hate crimes to theforefront.
We stand in solidarity with Megan Williams and support all efforts thatrespond with justice and accountability to the plight of victims braveenough to reveal their identity and their hope for change.

###

For more information regarding this statement, please contact Kenyatta Grantat West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence, (304) 965-3552.
*This statement was developed by the West Virginia Coalition AgainstDomestic Violence Women of Color Caucus and allies at the WV Summit onViolence Against Women and was read to conference participants.

Re: Latoyia Figueroa - A Philadelphia Tragedy

Remembering Latoyia with the Bee Gees "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart?" video as background music

Memorial to Erica Green (Precious Doe)

Genarlow Wilson and the Invisible Black Girls

This essay talks about the lack of honor when it comes to Black female victims in the Black community. Thank you, Ann.

Megan Willliams a victim of a Hate Crime

Megan Williams was kidnapped, beaten, raped and dehumanized by animals in human skin. Praise God she survived please Pray for her, send a card, money help her by showing you care. Also check out myspace.com/U4meganwilliams

Dunbar Village Prayer Walk

A few months back, Dunbar Village was thrust into the national spotlight due to a heinous crime committed in community. In response, the local churches banded together for a prayer walk around the neighborhood to reclaim the community for Jesus Christ.