Women Grab Bigger Piece Of Business Pie

Ada Giannini 
Jan. 27, 1996 
Ada H. Giannini, 71, Of Indian Mountain Lakes, Albrightsville, Died Saturday 
At The Leader East Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Kingston.

Monday, January 29, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A 





A grieving mother offers a message &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Last May, Edna Vivian learned a cruel lesson about the criminal justice
system"Victims don't have rights," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Vivian had tried to question the New York parole office about inmate John
Dean. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Is he enrolled in Alcoholics Anonymous? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Is he getting help? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Is he getting out? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vivian had strong reasons for asking such hard questions. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On July 23, 1988, Dean drove his car head-on into a van carrying Vivian's
daughter, Kim. The fiery crash killed Kim, her fiance and three members of
another area family. Mark Zofcin, the sole survivor, lost his wife and two
children. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The six friends were on their way to a flea market in Amagansett, N.Y. Dean
had been drinking beer all night before turning the wrong way onto the Long
Island Expressway. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Now 35, Dean pleaded guilty to five counts of second-degree manslaughter
and is serving a 5- to 15-year sentence in a New York state prison. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At the sentencing, Dean cried, telling the court he'd gladly give his life
if it could bring back the dead. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Back then, the heartsick mother wasn't convinced. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So she tried to keep track of Dean and his exodus through New York's penal
system. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I have the right to know `Is he being rehabilitated? Is he going to AA? Is
he improving his life?' I wasn't allowed to know any of that," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Eventually, she reached Dr. Thomas Christian, director of the Community
Dispute Resolution Program in Albany. Christian asked Vivian if she would like
to meet Dean face to face. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 She said yes. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Then, the network TV show "48 Hours" called. They wanted to film the
meeting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "My ultimate goal since my daughter died was to keep her memory alive and
to help victims," she says. "This way, I could reach people across the
country." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On Sept. 7, the day before the meeting, a "48 Hours" crew arrived in
Wilkes-Barre to track Vivian's every move, from her visit to Kim's grave to
the drive to New York. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 During the meeting, lights blazed and cameras rolled. Vivian says she
wasn't conscious of anything but Dean -- and Kim. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I felt my daughter there," she says. "She supported me." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Instead of hate, Vivian chose forgiveness. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I saw that this man was rehabilitated. He took responsibility for what he
did and became a better person," she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "He is remorseful. He is hurt. He is caring." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The TV show aired two weeks ago. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The hardest part for Vivian was watching a short video taken of Kim at her
brother's 16th birthday party. On the tape, a joyous, goofy Kim mugs for the
camera. She looks splendidly alive. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vivian hadn't watched the tape for eight years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "She was a card," recalls Vivian. "She used to wear flannel shirts and her
dad's hunting socks. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It was very hard for me to see her." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 After the accident, Vivian was instrumental in reactivating a local chapter
of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Serving as the chapter's president
from October 1989, Vivian resigned from the organization in March 1991 after
an internal squabble. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 She's now active in a similar organization, Students Against Drunk Driving
(SADD). To dramatically drive home the dangers of drunken driving, Vivian
helps stage mock funerals at area schools, colleges and clubs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The first time was the toughest. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I walked in, and there was the casket. I didn't know if I could do it,"
she says. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Since then, Vivian has spoken before dozens of audiences about her
daughter's death. If she could, she would take the program on the road,
visiting schools throughout the nation. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vivian, who works at Harris Semiconductor in Wright Township, was married
to the late Robert Vivian. The couple raised three children on South Franklin
Street: Kim; Malissa, 27; and Charles, 25. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kim would have celebrated her 30th birthday in July. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Vivian continues to advocate stiffer penalties for drunken drivers and
incarceration without bail. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Every time there's a death, I take it very personally," she says. "Every
time there's an arrest, I'm very happy." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Twice denied parole, Dean is now on a work release program. His next parole
hearing is in 1997. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER/LEWIS GEYER &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Edna Vivian &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Up Close &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Dawn Shurmaitis &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

A Grieving Mother Offers A Message Last May, Edna Vivian Learned A Cruel Lesson About The Criminal Justice System.