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How and Why is LOLAM being formed?
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After Jenny and Tony’s son was murdered, the couple found themselves plunged into a nightmarish situation they could never have imagined, and with it came numerous problems that they were ill-equipped to deal with.
For instance:
* Official procedures with the coroner’s office and the police investigation prior to their son’s funeral;
* Understanding legal documents;
* Court room procedures;
* Health problems;
* Financial difficulties after they had to stop work as a result of their emotional/health ailments.
In the event of someone’s partner being murdered, the bereaved partner may find themselves in a position where they are unable to maintain their home or garden, or they could experience difficulties with transport.
As you can see, bereavement in such circumstances can throw up a multitude of hurdles for those left behind to overcome.
Organisations such as Victim Support can offer vital counselling and other services, but financial and practical aid is rarely available.
This is the gap Jenny and Tony hope LOLAM will eventually be able to fill. They also hope to establish a free 24-hour telephone line that the bereaved can use to speak to someone who REALLY understands what they are going through.
In October 1994, Timothy Croxford, aged 27, was stabbed to death by his friend and work colleague Adrian Steers in an unprovoked and needless attack. Within minutes of the deed, Steers was arrested. He was eventually found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Tim’s death tore the heart out of the Croxford family. Since the murder his parents, Jenny and Tony, have suffered such ill health that neither of them have been able to return to work. As a result, they have suffered considerable financial hardship as they are both below retirement age and do not qualify for any benefits that would ease their situation.
Since their son’s death, Jenny and Tony have realised that there is a huge number of people in a similar situation to themselves.
Tony says: “I have discovered details of all the charities that are available to prisoners and their families. There are around 34 charities in all, performing all manner of tasks on behalf of prisoners and their families. There is even an organisation for prisoners abroad that helps to finance the visits of the prisoners’ families. Other charities help out prisoners’ families in times of financial hardship.
“Jenny and I found it particularly galling to think that these services are available for the perpetrators of such crimes and their families, whereas there is little available to people like us. The guilty and their families have more available to them than the innocent, and that cannot be right.
“Jenny and I are both unable to work owing to ill health since our son’s murder, so we are suffering financially to such an extent that our retirement plans have gone out of the window.
“But who is there to help families like us financially? I’ll tell you – no-one. That is why Jenny and I are determined to do what we can to help people who find themselves in a similar situation. We hope LOLAM can fill that gap – but we need a lot of help to do this.”
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