Intellectual, Emotional and Cognitive Convergence & Distortion: Academic As Violent Crime Survivor

• In Event: Victimization over the Life Course: Longitudinal Consequences of Bullying and Adverse Experiences

Abstract

On Nov. 11th 2016 in Oakland, California, police, fire and emergency personnel responded to calls on arson and shots fired at 9413 Dunbar Drive. Dana Rivers was arrested on scene accused of stabbing and shooting Benny Wright, Charlotte Reed & Patricia Wright. Patricia Wright was my sister. Charlotte Reed was her wife and Benny Wright, her adopted son.
Days later, I flew to Oakland to deal with the murders. Upon my return to the East Coast, my aorta dissected in a class when discussing violent crime, requiring a month long ICU and rehab stay.
Prior to this, I was several chapters into a manuscript on how survivors of violent crime heal from their victimization. This presentation explores the following questions:
- What happens when the academic becomes a survivor of violent crime?
- What happens when the criminal justice scholar becomes the criminal justice participant?
- How does survival and murder impact one's intellect?
- How does a criminologist live the life of a homicide co-victim?
- How does the manifestation of a trauma history influence a cognitive search to understand victim resiliency and recovery?

Author

• Richard Gordon Wright, Bridgewater State University