COLUMBIA, S.C. — Advocating for victims is the goal of the South Carolina Victims Matter rally.
People gathered today at the state house to share stories about victims of sexual assault, domestic violence and other violent crimes.
"I’m her dad, right? So in my eyes, she's perfect. But she was an incredible person, she was really loving," Carl Stoller describes his daughter Dallas. "She really just thought the world everybody said such a big smile always and she never really let anything get her down."
In 2018, Dallas went to a party, which her sister Karlee says changed her life.
"She was never the same person after it," Karlee explains. "Her smile, like we said, was extremely bright but after that it lost its glow. It was never the same."
"It's almost like she passed before she even passed," Dallas' best friend, Alyson Hay, adds.
Dallas said she had been sexually assaulted. Three years later, she died by suicide — still waiting for trial. That wait, her father says, can be detrimental.
"And then cases just fade away," Stoller shares. "Victims never receive justice."
Justice is what rally attendees like Nedra Myers are fighting for. It's why she attended the SC Victims Matter rally, organized by the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network and South Carolina Coalition against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.
"I am here to try to get some of these laws changed, talk to my legislators and just be supportive of the cause for domestic violence and other crimes also," Myers says. "We support each other. We're there for each other, we can call each other. We cry together, we talk about laws that's not being passed. We come out to support the laws so that we can get a change. And we have just a group of people that's been through some of the same things that we've been through. And we're just grateful for the support that they're giving us."
After Myers’ daughter Ebony was shot and killed by her husband, who's now serving 27 years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter, Myers tells me she finds strength with other survivors like Sandy Smith.
Smith is searching for answers as her son Stephen’s murder investigation is underway eight years after his death.
"Being heard being shut out for so long and now that everything's moving forward," Smith shares about the rally's turnout and the support she's received in recent weeks. "It's just amazing how many supporters we have."
Amazing despite the how hard it is, Stoller details.
"I struggle to get up every day and take another breath. My wife's the same way, her sisters is that way, but we have to move on," Stoller explains. "But you got to continue that fight. You have to continue that fight."
A fight for rights that Sarah Ford with the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network says are important.
"Victims have the right to be notified, they have the right to be present. They have the right to be heard at bonds, at hearings. And we see far too often that those very laws that are constitutionally based are not upheld," Ford explains. "All victims of crime deserve to have a day where their voices are heard, where their voices are centered. And that was the purpose of us being here today: to hear from victims, to hear about the change that they want to see. They're the ones who've experienced it in the system. They've seen where things have gone wrong. And it's time for us, those in power, those here at the State House to listen to those voices, because they're the ones that can lead us to the changes that we need."
A couple specific pieces of legislation the rally cites include Senate Bill 147, which protects confidentiality for survivors of sexual and domestic violence and House Bill 4158, which would allow survivors of domestic violence to terminate a lease to find a safe place to live without significant financial penalty.
"Keep pushing for what's right, if you feel it's right, push for it," Stoller says about what he's learned. "Don't give up because your voice will matter eventually whether it's at the ballot box right here on the state house grounds or wherever, it will matter eventually. But you can get change if you push for it."
"Because people need to know how our justice system is doing our children and our family members and it's not fair," Smith adds, echoing Stoller's push to keep fighting.
Her attorney, Eric Bland, says this fight is a way to get answers.
"Everybody has a unique story as a victims advocate and a survivor of people who were victimized by crime," Bland tells me. "Their stories are all unique, but the common thread that weaved through all those stories was the frustration that these victims or advocates are feeling that the system is letting them down, not communicating with them and that they're almost an afterthought."