Sherrerd Hartness on Victims’ Needs, Trauma, and the Limits of the Death Penalty

In the April 2026 episode of 12:01: The Death Penalty in Context, DPI Managing Director Anne Holsinger speaks with Sherrerd Hartness, a writer and speak­er who advo­cates for vic­tims’ fam­i­lies and co-vic­tims of mur­der. In 1977, Ms. Hartness’s sis­ter, Carlotta, was killed — an expe­ri­ence that shaped her under­stand­ing of the long-term emo­tion­al impact of vio­lent crime on fam­i­lies and com­mu­ni­ties. Her work now focus­es on rais­ing aware­ness about the needs of co-vic­tims and the emo­tion­al chal­lenges they face in the after­math of loss.

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