PRESIDENT BUSH AND ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT TO HONOR
THOSE WHO ASSIST AMERICA'S CRIME VICTIMS

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Tuesday, April 16, President Bush will join Attorney General John Ashcroft at the Department of Justice for the Crime Victim Service Awards Ceremony. This award is the highest federal award for outstanding service to crime victims.

The Crime Victim Service and Fund Award Ceremony highlights National Crime Victims' Rights Week, observed this year from April 21 to April 27.

WHAT: Crime Victim Service and Fund Award Ceremony

WHEN: Tuesday, April 16, 2002 at 10:15 a.m.

WHERE: Department of Justice

Great Hall

950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW

Washington, D.C.

Some award recipients and Justice Department officials will be available Tuesday – in person or by telephone – to discuss the awards and the Justice Department's efforts on behalf of crime victims. The following individuals will receive awards:

2002 Crime Victim Service Award Recipients

Canandaigua, NY - David and Ann Scoville, Victim Advocates

Sacramento, CA - Chaplain Mindi Russell, Law Enforcement Chaplaincy-Sacramento

St. Louis, MO - Aid for Victims of Crime, Inc., Edward Stout, Director

Tupelo, MS - Carolyn Clayton, Executive Director, Survival, Inc.

2002 Susan Laurence Memorial Award for Professional Innovation in Victim Services Award Recipient

Olympia, WA - Washington State's Address Confidentiality Program, Margaret McKinney, Program Manager

2002 Federal Service Award Recipient

Asheville, NC - Lynne Ward Crout, Victim Witness Coordinator, U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of North Carolina

2002 Crime Victim Fund Award Recipients

Financial Litigation Unit, U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Puerto Rico United States v. Peggy Rurup Team, U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Iowa

John W. Gillis, Director of the Justice Department's Office for Victims of Crime, will also be available for interviews. To schedule an interview with an awardee(s), please call Adam Spector at 202/307-0703. For more information or to interview a Justice Department official, contact Monica Goodling at 202/514-2007.

Preset for the event will be from 6:30 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. Media interested in covering the event should enter the Department through the 950 Pennsylvania Ave. entrance. Press check-in at 9:00 a.m. All media inquiries should be directed to Lauren Pfeifle.

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