
DATE: Tuesday, November 11, 1997            TAG: 9711110499

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: PUBLIC SAFETY

SOURCE: BY JON FRANK, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  145 lines

FOR VICTIMS' LOVED ONES, LIFE CAN, AND DOES, GO ON SOME SURVIVORS, LIKE NEWPORT NEWS' DALE PENNELL, FIND SOLACE IN WORKING TO HELP VICTIMS - AND FELLOW SURVIVORS.

The brutal murder of Dale Pennell's sister in a Ghent apartment in 1987 left a psychological scar on Pennell that will never heal.

It wasn't just the shock of her sister's death. It was the way 28-year-old Grace Elizabeth Payne was killed.

She was beaten and raped. She was tortured, strangled, suffocated and repeatedly stabbed. ``They were not even sure what part of the assault killed her,'' Pennell said.

The murder traumatized the entire Pennell family. Pennell and her husband sought counseling for themselves and for their son, who was especially close to his aunt.

``I really lost about one year of memory, except for things connected to the crime,'' Pennell said. ``I couldn't remember another thing that happened. I was in a fog.''

But the crime also transformed Pennell's life. The long effort to bring her sister's killer to justice turned Pennell into a dogged advocate for survivors of homicide.

Since the murder of her sister, Pennell has helped Gov. George F. Allen restructure the criminal justice laws in Virginia.

She traveled the state during the early months of the Allen administration - giving speeches and appearing at press conferences - to make the case for ending parole and turn truth-in-sentencing into a reality. Virginia's no-parole law was passed in January 1995.

She also helped form Virginians United Against Crime, which bills itself as an ``official network of crime victims, survivors of homicide victims, and concerned citizens.''

This year, along with several other citizen crime-fighting groups, Virginians United Against Crime sponsored a debate for candidates for attorney general.

The murder reverberated so violently through the Pennell family, in part, because Pennell and her sister were as close as sisters can be while living independent lives. Payne, a graduate of Old Dominion University, lived in Ghent but was very much a presence at the Pennell house in Newport News.

``She had a room upstairs, a toothbrush in the bathroom, all of her contact lens stuff here,'' said Pennell, who is married with two children. ``She was very much a part of our lives.''

That made the initial shock of losing her sister nearly a knockout blow. It sent the Pennell family into a daze that the family's therapist compared to post-traumatic-stress syndrome.

``I just felt overwhelmed and numb,'' said Pennell, an assistant principal and career educator with the York County schools.

The course of the investigation and trial made matters worse. Soon after the arrest of the only suspect - Ricky DeWayne Rogers, who eventually was convicted of the murder - problems developed. DNA evidence proved inconclusive, and witnesses suddenly became scarce. One died, another was murdered and a third suffered a stroke.

Eventually, Rogers was released and charges against him were withdrawn, leaving the possibility that he could be charged again.

``When he was released it was very hard,'' Pennell recalled. ``I was too numb to want retribution. I just felt frightened that he would hurt someone else.''

But that also brought out the steel in Pennell, making her more determined than ever to keep pushing for justice.

``I said to myself that I've got to make good come out of this,'' Pennell remembered. ``I've got to figure out how to make this experience work to help someone else.''

Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s Pennell stayed in touch with the Norfolk detectives and prosecutors involved in the case. She also began working on the no-parole issue after one of the founders of another homicide survivors group recommended Pennell to Allen.

Her first press conference in Richmond was a life-altering experience. A person who had always shied from the spotlight, Pennell suddenly found she could no longer hang back. She had to step forward and talk about her feelings.

``It was a real metamorphosis for me,'' Pennell said. ``It got me moving and was a turning point emotionally for me. I had felt so helpless for so long.''

Getting involved with the hope of helping others, Pennell said, made all the difference in her ability to deal with her personal loss.

Pennell's newfound activism coincided with developments in the investigation into her sister's death. Norfolk's new commonwealth's attorney, Chuck Griffith, was interested in pushing the case forward. Another DNA test indicated that Rogers was the killer.

In August 1996 he was convicted of murder, rape and robbery stemming from Payne's death. Rogers, 40 at the time of the conviction, was given three life terms in prison, plus 25 years.

This month, an appeal of Rogers' conviction was denied.

Ironically, Rogers will be eligible for parole in about 25 to 30 years because the crime took place before Virginia's no-parole law went into effect.

It underscores the need for diligence among those seeking justice, Pennell said. ``If people who have had my experience don't stay focused on the concerns of crime survivors, who will?'' she said.

Pennell has a couple of suggestions for people who find themselves in the situation she was in 10 years ago.

``First of all, don't give up,'' Pennell said. ``I was very persistent and it paid off.''

Second, Pennell said, it is important that ``people see themselves as their own best advocates. You must not allow yourself to be victimized by the system.''

That is Pennell's current focus. She is working on enabling legislation that will put teeth into the crime victims' bill of rights that became an amendment to the state Constitution last year. For instance, Pennell wants families of victims to have the right to make oral statements to the jury and judge before sentencing. Currently, only written statements are allowed.

Pennell also wants all localities to have victim/witness offices that are funded by the state.

Being a homicide survivor, Pennell said, ``really is a life sentence. You can't walk away from it. I don't want to walk away from it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo

BETH BERGMAN NAKAMURA/The Virginian-Pilot

Dale Pennell's sister Grace Elizabeth Payne...

Graphic

FOR SURVIVORS

FRIENDS AND FAMILIES AGAINST CRIME TODAY - FFACT is a group that

originally was formed in the mid-1980s to assist in the

investigation into a series of murders that occurred on and around

the Colonial Parkway. The group now welcomes all those who have lost

a loved one to a violent crime. For more information, call Lou Call

at 872-7414.

MOTHERS AGAINST CRIME - This group was formed in 1990 by

Jacqueline McDonald after her son, Delvin McDonald, was murdered.