The following was posted on One Mom's Battle on March 13th, 2023
Today, Ty and Brynlee Larson welcomed a small victory: Judge Jeffrey Pullan placed a stay on the write until the district attorney finishes the criminal investigation. The media attention is likely having a huge impact on this case. Judge Derek Pullan knows teh whole world is watching, so now the fate of Ty and Brynlee Larson rests in the hands of Salt Lake County District Attorney, Sim Gill.
We
need people to call the district attorney to demand
accountability. We need people to email districtattorney@slco.org to
let them know that the whole world is watching and that an army has formed
around these children. We need all hands on deck, and all eyes on
this situation. We need to demand a full and thorough investigation, and
prosecution. We have systems in place that should be protecting the most
vulnerable members of our society yet they are continuously failing.
Many
moons ago, my little girl climbed into my car after parenting time with her
biological father, and I immediately knew that something was wrong. Her face
was red and puffy, tears streamed down as she tried to explain what had
happened. My heart was pounding as a multitude of possible scenarios flashed
through my mind.
“Dad
hurt my arm,” she’s stammered in between sobs. “I was taking the ornaments off
the tree too fast, and he got mad.” I looked down at her arm, and there was a
red mark from the assault. I reflected on the times he had grabbed my own arm
out of anger, he wanted to let me know that he was in control. I remember
feeling like a caged animal, knowing that I was powerless against him.
“Sweetie,
we need to go to the police. They will help us,” I explained, as I begin to
drive towards the police station. In that moment, as painful as it was to hear
how distraught she was, I prayed that this would be it. The family court system
and child welfare services had been letting us down for several years. Now, my
ex-husband was escalating to the point of physically assaulting my little girl
and there were marks. What will it take for someone to protect my
children from this monster and his family, I wondered?
At
the police station, Piper gave a powerful and credible interview about the
events that had transpired leading up to the assault. The police officer
believed her and spoke to me privately. He told me that he needed to reach out
to Seth as part of the investigation, but that he would be forwarding the case
to the district attorney and recommend prosecution. He labeled it as, “assault on
a minor child.”
“Finally,”
I thought. Finally, he was going to be held accountable for his actions. The
next day I called the district attorney’s office and was assigned a victim
witness representative. I offered to bring my daughter to their office for an
interview, and I offered to give permission for them to speak to my daughter’s
therapist. I explained that Piper’s therapist would be able to further explain
the ongoing issues and concerns. Within a week, I was contacted by my
representative who informed me that they were going to close the case.
“But…
he hurt her - he assaulted her. She was at the police station within an hour of
this incident happening, and there were marks. I don’t understand?” My mind was
racing and I could not grasp what this woman was saying to me. They were
going to close the case, but what about the police officer telling me that he
was recommending prosecution?
Reflecting
back to that day, I naïvely believed that systems were set up to protect
children, the most vulnerable members of our society. That’s what I grew up
believing, that’s what we are taught by society yet that isn’t what truly
happens. Now that the naivety fog has dissipated, I see things as clear as day.
For
the district attorney, it was about how many notches were etched into his
prosecution belt. Prosecution records and media sensationalism is what propels
their careers forward. They want cases that are high profile or, effortless
slam dunks. It’s often about ego, publicity, résumé building, and future reelection.
For
some district attorneys, there is a human element that comes into play. They
weigh out how strong is the evidence is, and how the victim or the child would
do on the stand? Is it worth putting a child on the stand and subjecting them
to more trauma through cross examination? These things are all weighed out
and giving consideration. This is where the severity of the crime, or the
offense comes in to play. If it is the sexual assault of a child, is the child
strong enough to endure a criminal trial? The harsh reality is that we are in a
system that is not trauma informed and we have judicial officers and other
court professionals who remain untrained on important topics such as victim and
perpetrator behaviors.
I
have learned that the system is not set up to protect victims. Through lived
experiences and over a decade of advocacy, I will emphatically state that
perpetrator’s rights trump victims. Show me a system that is supposed to
advocate for victims, and I will show you a system that acquiesces to
perpetrators.
The
district attorney is an elected official, we have to amplify our collective
voices on behalf of Ty and Brynlee Larson. We cannot allow this system to
acquiesce to a perpetrator, we must demand justice and we must demand better
for our children. Being safe from abuse is a basic human right. Children's
rights are human rights, let's get loud and protect these children.