Victim Impact Statement for Teddy Bellingham
John S. Brack
One who wonders how we, in the Native community, are affect-
ed by the death of our young brother, Teddy Bellingham,
wonders as well at the providence that unites a family. We
are in pain, we feel the hurt felt by Caroline and Greg
Bellingham. The sense of loss, a relative has been taken
from us. We feel a sense of guilt, if only we had been
there to protect him. We were too late to save Teddy. So
we come here today to save others like him, to give assuran-
ce of affection to our youth, as brothers and sisters.
Teddy Bellingham was the true victim in this senseless trag-
edy. He had the bad luck to cross paths with a big man with
a killing rage and died because of it. God did not build
the human body to absorb 4-5 hours of almost continuous
blows. Teddy's body gave in to death as would the body of
your loved one if put through a similar ordeal. Steve Allen
beat Teddy Bellingham to death and then placed him in a
shallow grave. Teddy's artistic talent, his good nature,
his chance to be a husband, a father and a grandfather, were
buried with him.
Crowfoot, a chief who lived over 150 years ago, said about
life, "Life is the breath of a buffalo in the winter time,
it is the flash of a firefly in the night, it is that shad-
ow which races across the grass and loses itself in the sun-
light". Like that flash of a firefly, Teddy was only here
for an instant before Steve Allen decided to take on the
role of judge, jury, and executioner. Now he is gone.
The light that was Teddy Bellingham has not been quenched,
it flickers yet, shielded from the wind by the Ottawa Native
Concerns Committee and Teddy's extended family. The light
will glow 'till there is just closure for Teddy's family.
We can say without shame that we shed tears upon hearing
testimony of how our brother died. We never broke the path
of peace we have chosen, nor do we intend to. But tell us,
you who maintain justice in Ontario, what will we tell our
children if a severe and just sentence is not passed here
today? Tell us, for we will be at a loss for words. The
youth, native and non-native must be made to feel protected
in this great province, from men like Steve Allen.
The story of Teddy Bellingham, the Chippewa boy from Ontario
will be told and retold many times in the years to come.
Our prayer is that when we tell his story, we can say in the
end, there was justice.
The Ottawa Native Concerns Committee
Teddy's Extended Family
- Albert Dumont
February 1996
--
John S. Brack<br...@freenet.carleton.ca>
(613)526-2482
wordwork
says...
---------------------------
I am glad the judge put this Allen psycho away for 25 years. Hopefully
he will serve every minute of it. Too bad those other pieces of human
refuse who witnessed this crime and did nothing cannot be dealt with
under the law. The sentence compensates a bit for that stupid
manslaughter verdict by the jury.
John D.
----------------------------
