Yesterday I had to write a victim impact statement for my brother in law's homicide case. The first draft was horrible. After a night's sleep I was able to revise it into something I don't hate and is pretty reflective of my feelings on the matter.
E. Victoria Schofield
Sweetwater County Circuit Court Judge
P.O. Drawer 1720
Green River, WY 82935
Victim Impact Statement
January 25, 2010
State V. James Dillion
Docket No. CR-2009-0537
On July 14, 2008 my brother in law was riding his bicycle on the bike path on Blair Avenue in Rock Springs when he was hit and killed by James Dillion who was driving a semi truck out of the Bunning Pipe Yard. Mr. Dillion admitted to not stopping his vehicle and when all was said and done he tested positive for methamphetamine and oxycontin. Both drugs being illegal (oxycontin because he didn’t have a prescription). This happened 18 long months ago.
Since that time, we have been stuck in a nightmare. It began with that breathless phone call from my husband, "Steve was hit by a truck on his bicycle!" I jumped up from my desk at work scrambling to find my keys and purse to dash to the hospital. I met a Harris cousin in the hallway of the hospital. She was a hospital employee and was trying her best to catch us all at the door to lead us into a room so that we could receive the news that Steve hadn't made it. We hugged and cried and made phone calls. We were escorted to the trauma room where Steve was lying so that we could see him. His body was covered with a sheet and dried blood was on his arms. It was surreal. My husband tried to pull the sheet from his body only to be stopped because the trauma was too severe and would have been too unpleasant to witness. The memories that strike me the most are of Steve's aunts holding his hands and of my pregnant daughter sitting on the floor because she could no longer stand up. She sat on the floor in the hallway of the hospital sobbing holding her arms protectively around the swollen belly of my grandchild. In the middle of all that pain and sorrow I looked at my daughter and instantly thought how bad the stress was for her and the baby and knowing there was nothing I could do to ease them from it. I prayed nothing would happen to the baby. We hugged and cried and lingered. Because how do you leave a loved one lying there alone? Breathing or not he was someone we loved deeply. How do you walk away? What comes next? One of the first phone calls I made was to our pastor who was also the hospital chaplain at the time. He was there with us as we sat with Steve to pray and give us comfort. In the next days we gathered and cried and shared our favorite stories of Steve. We had his memorial service in a packed church that testified to how loved he was.
We no longer get to go with Steve on camping trips, have family dinners, celebrate birthdays or holidays, or do any of the things with him that you do with the people you love. Steve was such a hopeful positive person who never complained about his lot in life. He had a disability, but you would never know it unless someone told you. He had in incredible gift of working with children with disabilities. My son, Guy, was one of them. Steve was so good with our son. He gave us tip after tip of things we could do for him. Steve understood him. We don't have that now. Steve would have been such a good mentor for my son as he navigates adolescence. Steve was getting ready to mentor a young man who had the same disability as he did. Steve was going to take him to Salt Lake and teach him how to navigate the city independently. What a gift that would have been to that young man. My grandchild never got to meet her uncle Steve. Now we can do nothing but grieve. Even as I write this, 18 months later, tears are streaming down my checks. My son is asking me what is wrong. "I'm doing something sad." I tell him. We haven't even been able to grieve properly because we’ve had no justice and no closure. Steve’s death has made it impossible to live our lives normally. Every family gathering has us discussing this and reliving the last 18 months. My husband Chris, Steve’s brother, was in a deep depression for a long time. He couldn’t understand why he couldn’t bounce back quickly. It has been so hard to watch my husband grieve and not be able to do anything about his frustration and anger that the legal system has failed him.
Once we got through the memorial service, we anticipated that the legal system would come to our rescue. Instead we have been given the run around by the County Attorney. He has acted like this was out of his hands
from the beginning. We insisted that Mr. Dillion be charged with a felony offense. Eventually he gave in and made the charge. From there the case was bound over to District Court. There was (and still is) enough evidence to charge Mr. Dillion with a felony and two misdemeanor drug charges. Soon after that, the State would make stupid errors that caused the case to be remanded back to Circuit Court. I think they gave up after that. At least that is what it appears. None of the evidence changed. None of the circumstances changed. This must have been the plan all along. We have suffered through continuance after continuance. I work in a law office and continuances are common, but this case has had far too many. We have been given little or no notice of hearings being cancelled. We have family that travels from Cheyenne, Pinedale, and FMC for each hearing most of us missing work to do so. How fun it has been to show up and be told, “Sorry no hearing today.” The County Attorney has made us feel as though we have been in the wrong and that Mr. Dillion is indeed the victim. On one occasion the County Attorney’s Office contacted one of our lawyers and implied that our interest in this case is for financial gain. If only money could bring him back, we would gladly give up all that we have to see Steve again. On another occasion the County Attorney contacted my employer to tell my boss he was unhappy with my behavior. I can’t even begin to express how inappropriate this is. Did Mr. Johnson think he was calling my daddy to tell me to behave? “Seriously Mr. Johnson, a body lands on your desk and you call to tattle on the difficult, grieving, lady.” Was my boss supposed to ground me or something? Was my boss supposed to say, “Bobbie could you please quit your crying and insisting on justice. The poor County Attorney can’t handle it.” Not only is this ridiculous, unprofessional, and immature, it rather smacks of keeping the woman in line, which I won’t tolerate. The County Attorney has made us feel like nothing but a burden, a thorn in his side. I guess we aren’t entitled to justice. We knew this would be difficult but being victimized by the County Attorney was not something we anticipated.
My family was the victim of a crime about 12 years ago. We had to deal with the County Attorney’s Office until the matter was resolved. I remember being treated well during that process. We were kept in the loop and our concerns and questions were all handled with sensitivity and respect. Our Victim Witness coordinator was very good at her job (I think her name was Sally Goich). The matter was resolved, a conviction was had, and restitution was paid. I’m not sure why we haven’t been treated in the same way now especially given that this is a homicide case and much more serious than the case we were dealing with back then.
The County Attorney is supposed to find justice for the victims of crime. Steve was a victim of an incredibly violent crime. The weapon was a mega-ton semi truck driven by a man who had no regard for the safety of others. It seems his only regard was to get out of that pipe yard with as little delay as possible so that he could deliver his next load. The fact that he had illegal drugs in his system is inexcusable. He could have used a different exit out of the pipe yard that had much better visibility and wasn’t nearly as steep as the gate he used. He could have and should have stopped before crossing the sidewalk/bike path. Had he stopped, Steve would still be here. It would have given him the precious few seconds he needed to be past the gate. Mr. Dillion has taken something from us that cannot ever be paid back. We feel that the plea agreement of a misdemeanor charge and to only serve 24 days of that year long jail sentence is wrong. The County Attorney indicated that jail time was the appealing thing about a misdemeanor charge. He would unlikely get jail time with a felony. (I’m pretty sure what he meant was that he wouldn’t be able to negotiate a jail sentence given that he never had any intention of taking anything to trial.) Twenty four days served is not what we were lead to believe and is not nearly long enough. What about the drug charges?
Mr. Dillon gets to have his life practically uninterrupted after doing such a horrible thing. This was not an accident. Every bit of this could have been prevented. Mr. Dillion’s drug use and intentional disregard for public safety are crimes. Mr. Dillion’s actions are inexcusable. He knew that was a heavily traveled pedestrian route. To not stop first, is incomprehensible. Steve Harris is gone forever and deserves much more in the way of punishment for his death. Mr. Dillion has had far better representation in this case than Steve Harris has. This is not the “World Class Organization” that Brett Johnson claims on the Sweetwater County Attorney’s website. Justice delayed is justice denied! Justice that only has a man serve 24 days in jail for homicide is no justice at all.
Bobbie J. Harris
Sister In Law of Steven K. Harris
