Walking to Support Crime Victims

The mother of a man slain to keep him from testifying in a murder trial will join the 16th Annual Courage Walk at Clement Park Saturday, May 2.

Rhonda Fields, the mother of Javad Marshall-Fields, will speak to the participants after the one-mile walk.

Marshall-Fields and his fiancée Vivian Wolfe were killed in June 2005 in a plot to keep him from testifying against a man who was accused in a killing Marshall-Fields saw.

Sir Mario Owens and Robert Ray were convicted in the death. Owens was sentenced to life in prison, and Ray was sentenced to 108 years.

Owens received the death penalty in the slayings of Wolfe and Marshall-Fields.

Rhonda Fields since has become a high-profile supporter of victim’s rights.

The Courage Walk, sponsored by the 1st Judicial District’s victim advocate program, coincides with National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.

Jefferson County Sheriff Ted Mink and Lakewood Police Chief Kevin Paletta will speak before the walk, which honors people who have lost loved ones to crime. It also recognizes the courage crime victims muster in dealing with the tragic aftermath.

The event is free and features the Clothesline Project, a collection of T-shirts hand-decorated by crime victims as a way to express their feelings.

The walk around Clement Park starts and ends at Park Shelter 6, which is behind the Columbine High School Library. The route is wheel-chair accessible and dogs on leashes are welcome.

Registration for the 11 a.m. walk begins at 10 a.m. Light refreshments will be provided.

Although the event is free, donations will be accepted to maintain the Courage Garden, train volunteer victim advocates and fund other crime-victim programs.

For more information visit http://www.jeffcosheriff.com.