Victims of crime meeting with a killer

In 1986, Ellen Halbert was raped, stabbed, beaten with a hammer and left for dead in her home in Texas. During her recovery, she began to speak out about victims’ rights and what needed to change in our “offender-focused” criminal justice system. In 1991, she was appointed by Governor Ann Richards as the first victim to serve on the Texas Board of Criminal Justice, the board that oversees the massive adult criminal justice system in Texas. This six-year appointment ended in March 1997. Ms. Halbert has won numerous honors and awards for her work. Due to her dedication to crime victims and tireless advocacy for rehabilitation of offenders, a 500-bed female substance abuse treatment prison honored her in 1995 by naming the facility the Ellen Halbert Unit. In 1996, both the Texas Corrections Association and the Texas Crime Victim Clearinghouse established awards in her name to recognize her work on behalf of crime victims. In 1997, she won the National Crime Victim Service Award, the highest Federal award for service to victims. In 1999, she was named as one of Texas’ Women of the Century. In 2001, she was the mediator for a Court TV documentary, “Meeting With a Killer – One Family’s Journey.” This documentary was nominated for an Emmy in 2002. Ms. Halbert is presently the Director of the Victim Witness Division at the District Attorney’s Office in Travis County, Texas.