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View Point
Let her legacy
be life, not death
Editor's note: Heather Vitarelli, 29, a Baldwin High School graduate who was attending college in California, was killed Sept. 8 when she was caught in the crossfire during an attempted robbery at Harrah's casino in Las Vegas. Stephen Mullen Jr. is charged with murder for what he says is the accidental shooting of Vitarelli. The Las Vegas trial is set for March 15, 2001.We have just received a beautiful photograph of my niece, Heather, from friends in California. It's one we hadn't seen before -- taken on her 27th birthday, she is smiling, as always, looking right into
the camera. Her eyes are bright and the leis are piled high on her shoulders.
A few minutes after opening that package with the photo, I received the news that the death penalty would be sought for Stephen Mullen, who is charged with shooting Heather during a robbery attempt in Las Vegas.
Nothing will bring Heather's smile back. Exchanging her life for another's is only perpetuating violence.
Our family's grief is immense, but my parents are the most compassionate and loving people on Earth. I know that they believe killing another human being, replacing one violent act with another, will not solve anything.
They do not feel the need for vengeance. They would rather repair a system that allows such easy access to guns.
Clearly, Mullen is a misfit who should not be allowed to ever have the opportunity to continue his life of crime. But killing him is not the answer. The answer is in action.
If we care about gun violence, we must elect officials who care, too. Don't be part of the 63 percent of Americans who are not making their voices heard by not voting.
Fortunately, U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink and Sens. Daniel Inouye and Dan Akaka of Hawaii have good records on gun-control issues.
More can be done on a community level. More than 40 percent of homes with children have guns. "Is there a gun where my child plays?" This is a simple question we can ask our neighbors that could save a child's life.
Our right to bear arms may have been applicable in another century but not today. Europe and Japan are enlightened enough to curtail gun crimes. Why can't the United States?
Come on, fellow Americans! Are we going to let Japan surpass us in this area, too?
In 1996, handguns were used to murder two people in New Zealand, 15 in Japan, 30 in Great Britain, 106 in Canada and 9,390 in the United States. This is a fact from the U.S. Department of Justice. Here are a few more important facts to wake us up:
Living on Maui, these facts may seem remote and distant, but they do touch home.There are four categories of federal safety regulations that apply to Teddy bears made and sold in America. There are zero that apply to guns, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Heather's death is something that will be with us for the rest of our lives, but sentencing Stephen Mullen to death is no solution. It will not erase the pain and sadness.
Do something positive in your own way: plant a tree and care for it, take that little extra effort to be kind, support gun control. Let Heather's legacy be life.
David Vitarelli is a resident of Haiku on Maui.
He is the uncle of Heather Vitarelli.