example
This link contains an example of the "open letter" message I referred to:
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2042675#top
The woman who wrote the "open letter" was the mother of a woman who was drugged and sexually assaulted so severely that the victim died. The writer is identified in this example, but the criminal is not, as he has yet to be apprehended. I have seen "open letters" in which the writer's name is withheld, and will post links as I locate them.
Edit: This link contains the text of the letter referred to above:
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/side/2042518
2nd edit: The text of the above letter is copied and pasted here, as the link may not last:
Aug. 11, 2003, 6:48PM
Text of mother's letter to daughter's killer
To My Daughter's Killer
They have asked me to appear in media to give a compelling mother's plea to the public so that someone will come forward and identify you. Well, I don't want to do that because I have other children whose lives have already been shattered by your heinous actions whose mental welfare I do not wish to see affected any more adversley than it already is.
Did you think that my child was a person that no one cared about and it didn't matter to you if you destroyed her life? Well, I doubt that, because somehow I think that Meghan probably told you something about her little sister, who was always a prominent part of her conversation. Perhaps you may even feel that if she had any brains, she would have gone to the hospital and everything would have been just fine, and since she would have no memory of what happened, you'd get off scot-free anyway. But guess what? Even if she had gone to the hospital, everything would not have been just fine because you had already done severe physical and psychological damage to her that would have left permanent scars on both her body and mind.
And gues what else? Meghan was deeply loved by those who knew her best, and when they catch you and you start to lie about her, I want you to know that there are many people who will not be fooled while you try to save your worthless soul from the sentence you deserve.
There were a lot of things about Meghan that no one but those closest to her knew. Like where she got that nickname Peepdog. Was it a street name? No. She got it from me, her mom. We always called her The Peep because she was so little when she was growing up. One day when she was 10, she wasn't helping me with the housework, so I said The Peep is being a dog today and called her Peepdog. She had that nickname long before the terminology dawg even came into common usage to mean a friend among young people. Or that West Side Story was her favorite musical. Or that she had been doing exercises faithfully every day so she could be the model in the exercise book I will probably never finish now.
Words fail me at this time and every single day as I am overwhelmed with the knowledge that I will never hear my daughter's laughter and see her beautiful face and eyes except in my memories or be able to hold her, hug her and kiss her, and I pray that she has found eternal peace. At the same time I know that my daughter did nothing to deserve or provoke such a brutal attack as you perpetrated upon her and I also pray that they are able to get you and get you off the street so you cannot harm any other young woman and no other family will have to go through what you have done to us.
Valerie Smith