NEWS RELEASE

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI

MATT J. WHITWORTH

Contact Don Ledford, Public Affairs ● (816) 426-4220 ● 400 East Ninth Street, Room 5510 ● Kansas City, MO 64106

www.usdoj.gov/usao/mow/index.html

APRIL 30, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS RIGHTS WEEK

ALVIN BROOKS HONORED AT ANNUAL COMMEMORATION

KC EVENT CELEBRATES 25^TH ANNIVERSARY

OF VICTIMS OF CRIME ACT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Matt J. Whitworth, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that Alvin Brooks was honored today as the recipient of the 2008 Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award.

The award is presented by the U.S. Attorney’s Office each year during the local observance of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week to recognize the outstanding work of an individual or organization in protecting children from exploitation. The award was presented to Brooks in memory of Crystal Kipper and Ali Kemp, two young women who were both fatal victims of tragic crimes, during a commemorative event this afternoon in Washington Square Park, at Pershing and Grand in Kansas City.

“This year is special, because we are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Victims of Crime Act,” Whitworth said. “It’s impossible to measure the immense impact this man has had, and continues to have, in Kansas City. The Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award is well-deserved recognition for a lifetime of impressive accomplishments and community service.”

Today’s events also included a memorial walk around Union Station and a performance from the children of Operation Breakthrough. Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney Jim Kanatzar and Jackson County Sheriff Mike Sharp provided comments, along with representatives from Operation Breakthrough and Bikers Against Child Abuse. The KCPD Mounted Patrol also participated in the event.

“Alvin Brooks’ public service over the past half-century gives him a unique perspective on the issues of crime and its victims,” Whitworth said. Brooks has experienced the impact of crime first-hand, serving as a Kansas City police officer for 10 years and, in 1991, selected as president of the Ad Hoc Group Against Crime. This is a broad-based grassroots community organization he founded in 1977 that has been dedicated to shaping a safer city for all who live here.

Former President George Bush honored Alvin Brooks in 1989 for his work with the Ad Hoc Group Against Crime and named him one of America's 1,000 Points of Light. President Bush also appointed him to the President's National Drug Advisory Council.

“The list of contributions that Alvin Brooks has made to our community is too lengthy to cite,” Whitworth said. “From his two terms on the Kansas City Council to his consulting work for businesses and government agencies, from his efforts to prevent crime to his commitment to protect civil rights, from his tireless support for victims of crime to his leadership role in assisting ex-offenders to lead productive lives through the Second Chance Foundation, Alvin Brooks’ commitment to public safety and improving the quality of life in Kansas City seem almost endless.

“This community appreciates the work Alvin Brooks has done on behalf of crime victims and their families.”

The Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award

Crystal Kipper was an 18-year-old Gladstone, Mo., resident who was murdered after her car broke down on Interstate 29, just north of Platte City, on Feb. 24, 1997. Ali Kemp was a 19-year-old Blue Valley North High School graduate who was murdered on June 18, 2002, while she worked at the Foxborough neighborhood swimming pool in Leawood, Kan.

The parents of Kipper and Kemp participated in today’s presentation of the sixth annual Crystal Kipper & Ali Kemp Memorial Award.

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This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is available on-line at