ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – Hundreds of pages of victim impact statements have been sent to Judge Lee Smith on behalf of the family of Tristyn Bailey. It gives new insight to just how much of an emotional toll Tristyn’s death has had on the entire St. Johns County community.
Judge Lee Smith will decide Aiden Fucci’s fate at the end of the week.
Just days after the Bailey family released more than two dozen photos of Tristyn, and shared more about her special relationship with each family member, we’re now hearing from Bailey’s closest friends, classmates, neighbors and even people who didn’t know her but were still impacted by her death. The Bailey family has a message for everyone as Fucci’s sentencing hearing takes place, to know that Tristyn’s legacy is not lost or overshadowed by this week’s proceedings.
READ: Letters to Judge Smith 1 | Letters to Judge Smith 2 | Letters to Judge Smith 3 | Letters to Judge Smith 4
In their own words, family, friends and others who knew the teen girl, plead with the judge through letters to keep Aiden Fucci in prison for the rest of his life, describing the effect Tristyn’s death has had on them.
One neighbor wrote, “Fear is never something you want your children to face in their home! My daughter had many interactions with Aiden, but when you attend the same school and ride the same bus, it’s impossible to avoid. Some of the many questions my daughter has: ‘Will Aiden ever get out of prison? If Aiden killed his friend, will he kill me? and Can we move so Aiden won’t know where we live anymore.’”
Another parent writes, “My husband and I say that there was the life we knew before Tristyn was murdered, and the life we know after it. There are some events that are simply a defining moment, a moment from which you can never fully recover and a moment that leaves you forever changed. This is one of those moments for us and our family.”
Fucci pleaded guilty February 6 to murder. The sentencing hearing begins Tuesday at 9:00 a.m.