CMN Celebrates National Crime Victims’ Rights Week 2026
This week, CMN honors National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, an annual commemoration celebrated by victim rights advocacy groups across the country to uplift dignity, safety, and healing amid the widespread need for victim-centered responses to crime and violence.
CMN is committed to centering the experiences of victim-survivors and is consistently motivated by testimonies of those who are most personally impacted by harm and violence. They demonstrate how the practices of restorative justice can be vessels for God’s grace to transform despair into hope as we advance a justice that heals.
As we celebrate National Crime Victims’ Rights Week during this Easter season, CMN has compiled a list of resources to be used and shared. They include stories of victim-survivors opposing the death penalty and engaging in restorative justice processes, as well as tools and opportunities to better accompany victims of violence and crime in our prayer and throughout Catholic ministry.
TOOLKIT | Dos and Don’ts for Accompanying Victim-Survivors Through a Restorative Justice Process
In the aftermath of a crime, a victim-survivor’s faith community is often one of the first places they turn to for support. Yet many of our parishes and ministries struggle with how to respond to victims’ complex needs for healing. As people of faith, we can be instrumental in supporting victim-survivors through restorative processes designed to meet their unique needs.
Download this Resource Toolkit to learn key “Dos and Don’ts” for all stages of victim-survivor accompaniment.
BLOG | “Restorative Justice Healed My Heart”: A Testimony from the Son of a Murder Victim
Chris Castillo’s 52-year-old mother, Pilar, was murdered in 1991. After becoming involved in prison ministry – specifically a program called Bridges to Life – Chris learned to forgive the men who killed his mother. Today, Chris shares his story with incarcerated persons through Bridges to Life, a 14 week faith-based restorative justice program.
VIRTUAL WORKSHOP | Intro to Restorative Justice
CMN’s introductory workshop on restorative justice is the best way to discover the core concepts and practices of restorative justice in the legal system, Catholic ministry, and beyond. Each workshop, offered quarterly, uplifts the experiences of victims through the voices of crime victim family members who have engaged in restorative justice processes.
Our next workshop will be hosted on May 4, 2026 from 2-4 p.m. ET. Sign up today to join us!
EVENT | First Friday Virtual Prayer Vigil
On the First Friday of each month, CMN gathers for a virtual prayer vigil to pray for people facing execution, the victims of violent crime, and all who are impacted by the unjust system of capital punishment. Join us for our May vigil on Friday, May 1 at 2 p.m. ET.
In a special way, we honored National Crime Victims’ Rights Week in our April 2026 vigil. You can watch the recording here.
ARTICLES | Victims Speak Out Against Executions
When states across the country pursue executions, they often invoke the name of the victims. Yet it’s common that these individuals — whose lives have been forever-altered by violence — publicly oppose the execution and ask the state not to take life in their name. Their voices frequently go unnoticed by the state.
Below are a few articles which tell their stories:
- Tori Battle opposed the execution of Charles “Sonny” Burton who was scheduled to be executed in Alabama for the murder of her father, despite the fact that the co-defendant in his case who actually fired the gun had received a sentence of life in prison. (Read More)
- Anna Lee urged Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to end the death penalty arguing that it diverts state-funded resources away from services that would actually support meaningful healing for victims and survivors, including herself. (Read More)
- Toni and Terrlyn Hall vocally opposed the execution of Joe James in Alabama who was sentenced to death for the murder of their mother. The governor refused their request, and Joe was executed on July 28, 2022. (Read More)
