Tributes to Frank Carrington

Frank Carrington will always be remembered for his steadfast support of victims of crime. He was a pioneer in the criminal justice system for bringing to the world’s attention the plight of victims of crime and instituting a legal center to help redress their losses.

Honorable Lois Haight, Chair

1982 President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime

Chief Judge, Juvenile Court, Contra Costa County, California

Frank was one of the most delightful people that I have ever had the pleasure of working with. He was totally dedicated to thecause of criminal justice. He carried his dedication with grace, good humor and incredible common sense. I remember his discussion of the prisoners in federal penitentiaries who, he said, were like the lilies of Jesus' parable, "they neither toil, nor didthey spin."

I consider it a great privilege to have been a member with Frank on President Reagan’s Task Force on Victims of Crime. Frank was a GIANT in the field.

Pat Robertson, Chairman of the Board

The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc.

Virginia Beach, VA

Frank Carrington educated me and influenced my thinking about how to attend to rights and needs of crime victims from our first meeting and his influence continues on today. He was so knowledgeable and such a pioneer in the field of civil legal remedies that it felt like a privilege to provide funding for his work.

His legacy is enormous: his book, The Victims, published in 1975; the extensive compendium of crime victim civil appellate cases he compiled that swung open the door to civil remedies for victims; the non-profit VALOR (the Victims’ Assistance Legal Organization) that he founded and nurtured for more than a decade; his role in President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime; his help in getting the Campus Security Act enacted; and his endless enthusiasm for advancing the legal rights of crime victims that gave us more strength.

And then, after a member of my family was the victim of a violent crime, Frank was there providing guidance and support. It was so helpful during a very painful time.

Remembering and honoring him through the establishment of this award are wonderful. His life’s work lives on and continues to help victims and inspire his colleagues every day.

Jane Nady Burnley Sigmon, Ph.D.

Director, Office for Victims of Crime (1987 – 1991)

Executive Director, VALOR (1992 – 1998)

Upon the tragic death of Frank Carrington in a fire which swept through his home and office in January of 1992, the NationalVictimCenter's Crime Victims' Litigation Program lost its founding father and guiding force. But more sadly, the Victims' Movement lost a hero and friend. In tribute and gratitude, the NationalVictimCenter has officially renamed the program the Carrington Victims' Litigation Project (CVLP).

Frank's association with the NationalVictimCenter (now “NationalCenter for Victims of Crime) dates back to 1986 when he first developed the concept for the CVLP. He wanted a program that would support crime victims in their search for justice by providing direct assistance to the attorneys who represent them before the civil justice system. The Civil Justice Database was thus born.

Through five years of painstaking work, Frank amassed more than 4,000 major appellate cases in the area of crime victim litigation. Since Frank's tragic death, Project attorneys have added another 2,000 cases, bringing the total number of cases in the database to more than 6,000. Access to this unique resource has allowed victim attorneys to conduct exhaustive case research in a fraction of the time and at a small percentage of the cost of research by conventional means.

The Coalition of Victims' Attorneys and Consultants (COVAC), another Carrington brainchild, was developed as a companion program to the database. It currently stands as the nation's only referral network of attorneys and consultants with distinct interests and skills relating specifically to litigation on behalf of crime victims. Due in large part to Frank's foresight, COVAC and its member attorneys now stand poised to usher in a whole new area of specialization for attorneys practicing in the field of civil litigation.

As Director of the CVLP, Frank personally provided information, legal counsel, and support for countless crime victims and their attorneys.

Illustrative of the widespread respect for his unmatched knowledge and experience, Frank became known as the "attorney's attorney" when it came to issues involving crime victims and civil justice.

Despite the endless hours spent reading and analyzing countless cases, Frank always had time to counsel victims and their attorneys. He treated the victims who sought his advice as more than friends; he treated them as family. And many attribute the success of their cases to Frank's steadfast support and his encouraging exhortation to "Never give up."

Frank's contribution to the NationalVictimCenter and the field of victim civil litigation did not end with the CVLP and COVAC programs. Frank co-authored the nation's only case law book written specifically on the subject, entitled Victims' Rights: Law and Litigation, and the only manual available for attorneys in the field, the Attorney's Victim Assistance Manual.

In 1991, as part of a Center project funded by the Office for Victims of Crime in the U.S. Department of Justice, Frank wrote Legal Remedies for Crime Victims Against Perpetrators: Basic Principles. The primary purpose of the manual was to educate social service providers about the basics of civil litigation so they could, in turn, educate crime victims about their rights and remedies within the civil justice system.

This 400 page manual serves as the basis for the Legal Remedies for Crime

Victims: Basic Principles Regional Training Series currently being conducted by the Center and funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime.

From his days as a law enforcement officer to his service on President Reagan's Task Force on Victims of Crime, Frank's legal genius, unflinching dedication, and boundless generosity helped establish and mold the entire movement. Despite the towering contributions he made to the field through a lifetime of legal scholarship, his greatest legacy is the thousands of broken lives he made more livable by helping victims find an alternative path to justice and a new road to recovery.

We cannot hope to replace the man who was the heart and soul of not only a project and a profession, but of an entire movement. We can, however, draw strength from his example and inspiration from his vision. We cannot replace him, but we can attempt to emulate him. We can pledge to pave the road to justice which Frank mapped out and upon which he labored his entire life.

The NationalVictimCenter and its staff have made the commitment to carry on Frank's work, and we aspire to realize the vision he had for the CVLP and COVAC. We are committed to continuing his quest for justice on behalf of crime victims everywhere.

All the achievements of the CVLP and COVAC programs, past and present, rest on the foundation laid by a lifetime of selfless labor. All future achievement will be guided by his vision and inspiration. When our lofty aspirations finally come within our grasp, it will be because we stand on the shoulders of a giant--a giant named Frank Carrington.

David Beatty, Executive Director

Justice Solutions

Washington, DC

I knew and worked with Frank Carrington for ten years before his untimely death in 1992. When I first met him he was working with VALOR and his influence on our nation’s public policy was about to change the landscape for crime victims. I was the Chief Counsel for a U.S. Senate Investigations Subcommittee and a former State Prosecutor from Florida. Frank Carrington changed the way all of us thought about the legal system and what it could do, what it should do, for crime victims.

In 1981 Frank was on a roll! President Regan had just been elected and Frank’s friend Ed Meese was the President’s close advisor. Frank’s advocacy lead to the appointment of the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime. It was a gutsy group of task force members and of course, Frank was the most vocal advocate among them.

I went to the hearings the Task Force conducted in two different U.S. cities. At the time, I was working on the issue of missing children and the establishment of the NationalCenter for Missing and Exploited Children .The task force invited testimony about the plight of abused children and how they had been treated in the criminal justice system. The final report of the Task Force was a plea for real change , in very urgent terms. It was critical, it was alarming, like Frank himself, it pulled no punches.

The President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime spawned a revolution in the criminal justice system. More than any single individual, Frank Carrington was responsible for it.

Frank also started the American Bar Association’s Committee on Crime Victims. He was an established author whose works are still revered. He, more than any other legal mind, pioneered the concept of civil remedies for crime victims. I still have his book, “Victim’s Rights: Law and Litigation on my office bookshelf.

We worked together on an American Bar Association book on representing abused children. When I opened a Florida law practice to represent crime victims in 1987, he counseled me on civil litigation principles that I still apply now. He was a scholar and a wealth of information on legal tactics.

I am proud to say that, through the efforts of Frank’s good friend, Eric Smith, the city of Jacksonville,Florida each year recognizes an outstanding individual with the “Frank Carrington Champion for Victims Award”. Eric presents the award at our annual Crime Victim’s Rights Lunch, the largest event of its kind in the country. And each year Eric and I again remind the five hundred in attendance of Frank’s legacy.

We cannot overestimate his contribution to the movement to establish fundamental legal rights for crime victims.

Frank was a true pioneer and a visionary. An advocate clearly ahead of his time.

Jay Howell

Founder, NationalCenter for Missing and Exploited Children

Victim’s Rights Attorney

Jacksonville, FL

As someone who has been called the “Father of the Victims’ Rights Constitutional Amendment Movement,” I am so happy to be able to salute the man who is widely recognized as the “Father of the Victims’ Rights Movement”!

When I first met Frank Carrington in the late 1970s, there was barely a “victims’ rights movement,” much less a respected field as it has become today. There were not many attorneys who embraced the concept of “victims’ rights,” and Frank was a welcome exception. He became an early and ardent supporter and member of the National Organization for Victim Assistance, America’s first national organization dedicated to promoting rights and services for victims of crime.

Frank is perhaps best known for his work as a member of President Reagan’s 1982 President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime. The Final Report developed by the Task Force literally warmed the hearts of many victims like me, and victim advocates across the Nation. In particular, Frank’s push for an federal amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ensure that victims have participatory rights throughout justice processes helped create a national movement that resulted in, today, 32 states having constitutional amendments that define and protect victims’ rights.

I remember Frank Carrington for his analytical mind, and his willingness to break down complex legal issues into language that the rest of us could understand! I remember Frank for his leadership in forging rights for victims throughout civil court processes – a concept that was unheard of in the 1980s! And I remember Frank for his commitment to and remarkable compassion for victims of crime. He truly felt their pain, and turned his understanding of their pain into positive action that resonates even today.

And in a field that deals on a daily basis with trauma and pain, Frank was well-known for his great sense of humor, and for the twinkle in his eye that always preceded a hearty laugh. For so many crime victims and advocates, he provided legal and emotional salve to wounds that were difficult to heal.

I am so pleased to have the chance to remind Frank’s daughters about what an outstanding person he was, and just how much he is missed. His legacy lives on in the strength of a “movement” that, in 2008, has become a vital, respected “discipline” that provides greatly needed help to crime victims and survivors. We love Frank, and we miss him.

Robert Preston, Co-Chair

National Victims’ Constitutional Amendment Network

I consider myself very fortunate that Frank Carrington was one of the first individuals I encountered in a public setting who actually understood the plight of crime victims and was prepared to champion their cause. That he was an attorney and this was back in the “dark ages” of the victims’ rights movement makes it all the more remarkable!

The years 1982 - 1983 were challenging ones for our family on a personal basis, but also in regard to our public advocacy for crime victims’ rights and services in our home state of Maryland. The non-profit we founded in 1982 in tribute to our slain daughter, Stephanie (the Stephanie Roper Committee & Foundation, Inc.) while supported by courageous legislators and many citizens, was often the target of cruel, inaccurate and undeserved criticism. Through the National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA) we found a welcoming home and mentors, and were privileged to meet Frank Carrington.

That association resulted in opportunities to participate in numerous public forums that are more deeply appreciated today because of their groundbreaking nature. On every occasion, I was impressed by this soft spoken attorney, always a gentleman, who not only cared about how crime victims were being treated, but was willing to put himself on the line to defend and advocate for victim justice. He was a true example of living the Golden Rule and being a Good Samaritan to those forced to endure the consequence of criminal violence and the often secondary victimization by our justice system.

Roberta Roper, Founder & Board Chair, Maryland Crime Victims’ Resource Center, Inc.

Chair, MarylandState Board of Victim Services

Co-Chair, National Victims’ Constitutional Amendment Network (NVCAN)

I was a fairly brand spankin’ new national victim advocate when I first met Frank. Although I had worked for National MADD for two years, I entered “Frank’s World” when I co-founded the Sunny von Bulow National Victim Advocacy Center (now the “NationalCenter for Victims of Crime”) in 1986.

Back in those days, there were many who didn’t view our new organization as a “benefit” to the field, somewhat understandably as we were all competing for the same limited funds and public attention. The first thing I remember about Frank was just how nice he was. He welcomed us with open arms. I remember Frank showing me the “little blue book” (the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime Final Report) and simply saying, “We have a lot of work to do!”

Frank was right. We had much work to do, and he was a big part of the doing! Through the NVAC, he created the Crime Victims Litigation Project that amassed more than 4000 appellate-level cases (with his lovely daughter Chris serving as the documentarian for this new project). Frank also worked with the NVAC to create the Coalition of Victims’ Attorneys and Consultants, a pioneering effort that brought together the few, the proud, and (today!) the many who work to address the legal rights of crime victims.

I also remember the first Office for Victims of Crime-funded project that Frank spearheaded with Christine Edmunds. The Legal Remedies for Crime Victims: Basic Principles introduced an entirely new concept of civil justice to our field. My best memory of this is putting the bulletproof 400-page manual together with Chris and the rest of the team. We actually, literally worked around the clock for about 10 days, living in our office and not paying much attention to personal hygiene. I brought in a cot that we dubbed the “Frank Carrington Cot” – it was smaller than a single bed with a tiny, thin cotton mattress, and Chris and I would slam our (then, much thinner!) bodies on it like sleep was a competition!

Frank Carrington was my first hero in the victims’ field, and remains so today. He was brilliant, funny and inspiring. He had a vision that was far beyond my scope at that time, but I rode his wave like I was a world-class surfer. He made me proud to be a victim advocate.

Frank loved Mary, Claire and Chris. They were his driving force that allowed him to become mine. So thank you, wonderful Carrington women, for the gift you shared with us!