Mennonites and other people talk a lot about peace and justice (or, more appropriately, restorative justice) and you hear about it from time to time in the news, but it is something totally different to see people living it out in difficult circumstances.
Well, this restorative justice was on display at the Alamosa courthouse today by Chloe Weaver's family. It was the sentencing hearing for the 16 year old boy that hit Chloe while she was biking and then drove off because he's a 16 year old boy and scared. Chloe's mom, dad, and sister all said a few things at the beginning. I wish I had these written down so you could experience the power of the combination of forgiveness and justice. Some things I remember are Hope talking about how Chloe's spirit will always be with him and support him, Herm (Chloe's dad) saying that Chloe would want him to help others and improve the world. The District Attorney spoke about a meeting with Herm, Hope, the kid and his mom. He said, "You would not believe the.... the only word for it is love.... in that room. It was one of the most incredible things I have seen in 20 years of being in the DA."
As for the actual sentencing (I hope I get this right), the Weaver's didn't really want him to serve time in detention because they want him to do more with his time than just sit there. They wanted him to do more public service and contribute. That's what Chloe would have wanted. However, the judge said he couldn't let someone who killed someone not serve time, so he will be serving 45 days with community service for 2 years. I spoke with Cindy, Chloe's mom, afterward and she said that they were asked about what they wanted for a sentencing and they said something to the effect of "We don't know who he is, what does he need?" And that is the question that should be asked of everyone- what do you need to learn in order to be a productive member of society? After living with my cousin who is a cop this last summer, I just realized how much this system isn't working. I'm sorry, but it's broken. I'm not sure what to do about it, but it needs to fundamentally change.
Through all this, I thank God. I'm thankful for the strength and mercy of the Weaver family. I'm thankful for the example and inspiration and encouragement they were to everyone in that room and will be to all they meet through this. I'm thankful for the gift of eternal life, that Chloe's life is not over, she is still affecting people, God is still using her- you can feel it. God works in mysterious ways, let's thank Him for that.
As the worst part about death is the people it leaves behind, I'm thankful Chloe is still with us in one way or another....
Mik, I started tearing up when I read this, what a beautiful account of love and faith.
ReplyDelete