Monterey County held National Crime Victim’s Rights Week event to honor homicide victims
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV)-- Monterey County homicide victims were honored and remembered in Salinas Friday for National Crime Victims Rights Week.
Loved ones of victims received ribbons and spoke their deceased family member's name.
The ceremony ended with doves released above the Monterey County Courthouse.
In attendance were the parents of Karina Chavez-Vargas and Jesus Arias Villa. The young couple was tragically gunned down in their car on Towt Street in early February over a case of mistaken identity.
READ MORE: Two killed in shooting in Salinas identified
Also receiving a ribbon was the fiance of fallen Salinas Police Officer Jorge David Alvarado Jr.
Officer Alvardo was murdered while he conducted a traffic stop in Salinas on Griffin and East Market Street.
READ MORE: Public memorial honoring Salinas Police Officer Jorge David Alvarado Jr.
"There are survivors from victims of crime and generally it's the family members who come here and share a very tragic event that changes their lives in so many ways," said Pamela Patterson with the Monterey County Sheriff's Office. "But they're able to come forward and show others they can survive and they can make a difference with other families because unfortunately, crime continues to affect us year after year."
To view a remembrance video the DA's office made for homicide victims in Monterey County you can click here.
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ORIGINAL STORY
Monterey County is set to host an event honoring victims of crime at the Monterey County Courtyard Friday.
The event will be held from 12 to 1 p.m. and will feature inspirational speakers, the parents of a young man that was murdered in 2014, survivors of homicide victims speaking the names of their loved ones and the releasing of doves.
Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni will also dedicate a Victim Memorial Sculpture in honor of those murdered in Monterey County in the breezeway of the courthouse campus.
In 2022, 3,000 new victims of crime have received 17,0000 mandated services in Monterey County.
