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Families gather in Spotsylvania Date published: 4/11/2000
By KARI PUGH THE FREE LANCE-STAR Nancy Seay's family waited nine years for justice. The families of Sofia Silva and Kristin and Kati Lisk are still waiting. But through handshakes and hugs, the Seay family offered hope to the others last night. The Seays, the Lisks and the Silvas were among the families and friends of crime victims who gathered outside the Spotsylvania County Courthouse to remember loved ones lost. Each lit a candle in honor of relatives or friends who have died violently in Spotsylvania. "Seeing the Seays helps me believe that this will be solved one day, too," said a tearful Phyliss Silva , whose 16-year-old daughter was abducted from the family's front porch and killed in 1996. Eight months later, 15-year-old Kristin Lisk and her 12-year-old sister, Kati, were snatched from outside the family's home and later found dead. DNA tests confirmed that the same man killed all three girls. The cases remain unsolved. "For us, it took nine years, but we never gave up hope," Harris Seay, Nancy Seay's widower, said after the candlelight vigil in honor of National Crime Victims' Rights Week. "You can't give up. You may never get over it, but you have to hold on to hope." A month ago, a jury convicted Michael Anthony Morris of first-degree murder in the 1991 unsolved murder of Nancy Seay. Seay was abducted from a grocery store parking lot on a hot July day, beaten, robbed, sexually assaulted and locked in the trunk of her car to die. The jury recommended that Morris-who was arrested last year-serve two life terms plus 40 years in prison for the crimes. "We're here to remember," said Vicki Quann, Nancy Seay's daughter. "I felt like coming here was something good I could do." Each of the 80 people who attended the vigil was given a small, lit candle to hold through the ceremony. Long after everyone else's flame had gone out, Patti Lisk -Kristin and Kati's mother-cupped her candle in her hands, protecting it from the wind. Stacy Harris, director of the county's victim-witness assistance program, read off the names of 27 crime victims last night. As she did, relatives of the slain walked to a table and each lit a candle. When Harris was done, the table was covered with flickering lights. "I ask all of you to leave a light on inside you to honor and remember these families whose suffering we cannot begin to imagine," Harris said. Spotsylvania and Stafford counties are conducting several programs to honor Crime Victims' Rights Week and Child Abuse Prevention Month. For more information, contact Stacy Harris in Spotsylvania at 582-7261 or Debra Love in Stafford at 658-4301.
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
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