HOULTON, Maine — Domestic violence shatters lives, destroys families and devastates communities. The sad part of domestic violence is that its true impact usually isn’t noticed until the death of an innocent victim occurs.
For Stephen Ketzel, that victim was his 2-year-old son Vance. On Sept. 8, 2004, Vance was killed by his mother’s boyfriend as a result of domestic abuse while living in Fort Kent. Ketzel was living in Florida when he heard the news of his son’s death.
“I just threw the phone,” he said. “I couldn’t believe what they were telling me.”
Ketzel and Vance’s mother had separated and she had relocated to Maine where she met Scott Saucier, the man convicted of Vance’s death. Ketzel said he couldn’t control the anger and grief that he felt over losing his son and because of that, he lost his job and his hope.
“I just didn’t want to live anymore,” he said. “I did drugs, I drank, I drank and drove. Whatever I could do to put myself in danger, I did it. But I guess God had other plans for me and that’s why I’m still around.”
The loss of a child has devastating effects, but Ketzel said losing his son as a result of physical abuse has been shattering.
“I have a 7-month old daughter now with my fiancé Mitra,” he explained. “She’s a wonderful mother and I find that I go overboard and worry over the littlest things. If she has a fever, I want to take her to outpatients immediately. I don’t think I could ever go through losing a child again. It would just kill me.”
Saucier was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with five years suspended and 10 years of parole for the death of Vance said Ketzel.
Last year, another Maine child was brutally killed as a result of domestic violence. Thirteen-year-old Anthony Tucker was shot and killed by his mother’s live-in boyfriend on Nov. 28, 2006. Anthony was an eighth-grade student and enjoyed all outdoor activities, loved his dog and “was true to his big brother role.”
According to statistics supplied by the Battered Women’s Project, more than 20 men, women and children from Aroostook County have been killed as a result of domestic violence since 1975. Their cries for help were heard too late. It’s for that reason that the Battered Women’s Project has created a special display to showcase those who lost their lives and the emptiness left behind as a result of their abusers’ actions.
The “Empty Place at the Picnic” is a visual memorial featuring items belonging to those individuals who lost their battle with domestic violence. A window outside of the Courtyard Café in Market Square features Leslie Gervais’ work for the Project and she said it was an emotional task putting together the display.
The Battered Women’s Project in Aroostook County will hold its “Flowers on the River” ceremony to mark this year’s event beginning with a candlelight vigil and walk, which will start at the Gentle Memorial Building at 6:30 p.m. and conclude at the Gateway Crossing pedestrian bridge in downtown Houlton on Thursday, Oct. 18. Rain or shine, the public is invited to take part in this vigil and picnic to support a “non-violent future” for everyone.
The vigil will remember “those who died because of domestic violence, celebrate the hope, strength and courage of survivors and take a stand as a community against the crime of domestic violence.”
Earlier this year, Maine lawmakers took steps to protect victims of domestic violence. Two bills were introduced before the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety to create a law that would treat domestic violence as a serious crime.
“An Act to Protect Families and Enhance Public Safety by Making Domestic Violence a Crime” — LD 1627 — would change the current law to create a crime called “Domestic Assault.”
LD 1627 is an instrument that law enforcement and prosecutors can use to send the powerful message to both victims and abusers that domestic violence will not be tolerated in “any form, in any context, in any circumstance.”
The bills would be scheduled for work sessions in the near future. A third bill relating to adequate funding of domestic violence and sexual assault prevention and intervention may be scheduled for a future public hearing as well. It is “An Act to Prevent Violence against Maine Families and to Provide Adequate Intervention in Cases of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault” — LD 1224, which is sponsored by Sen. Bill Diamond (D-Cumberland County).
Domestic Violence Awareness Month is an opportunity for the community to become involved in something that has been under a public stigma for decades, and continues to be today. By recognizing and remembering the victims and survivors, the public is standing together to voice their feelings that this behavior can no longer be tolerated, say organizers.
According to statistics supplied by the Battered Women’s Project, more than 20 men, women and children from Aroostook County have been killed as a result of domestic violence since 1975. They are: Elizabeth Johnson, Maxine Beaulieu, Linda Pelletier, Lena Morin, Beverly Forrest, Eleanor Burns, Betty Curliss, Audrey Laferriere, Jennifer Smith, Connie Humphrey, Cote Cousins, Cortina Cousins, Tina Cousins, Leonard Daigle, Christina Gray, Vicki Morgan, Michael MacDonald, Stephen Vance Ketsel, Melissa Mendoza and Bonnie Hayes.
For more information on the Battered Women’s Project contact their Houlton office at 532-4004 or toll-free at 1-800-429-2323.
