For Immediate Release: 7/9/07

Naples, FL – Former Manhattan Prosecutor and best-selling crime novelist Linda Fairstein, one of America’s foremost legal experts on crimes of violence against women and children, will be the keynote speaker during the eighth annual Mending Broken Hearts with Hope Luncheon, presented by the Guild of the Shelter for Abused Women & Children, taking place at 11 a.m. on Friday, February 29, 2008, at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples, 280 Vanderbilt Beach Road.

“Beyond the thrill of having a best-selling author join in our event,” explains Shelter Director of Development Cyndi Fields, “is the fact that her work is based on the reality she encountered during her three-decade tenure at the New York County District Attorney’s Office.”

As the Bureau Chief of the pioneering Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit, New York County District Attorney’s Office, Fairstein supervised Manhattan cases involving sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse and homicides arising from these crimes. Her first book, the non-fiction Sexual Violence: Our War Against Rape, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year in 1993, was based directly on her work experience.

According to Fairstein, “For far too long, the subject of interpersonal violence in America was not acknowledged to be as widespread and pervasive as we understand it to be today. The criminal justice system, slow to respond to needs of victims of these crimes for decades, has been able to improve its record only when the legal and medical communities joined with social service agencies – mostly grass-roots and under-funded organizations – to help survivors transition to a safer lifestyle.”

Fairstein addresses intimate partner violence and related life-and-death issues not only during speaking engagements, but also through her novels. Her second work, Final Jeopardy, was the first in an internationally best-selling series of crime novels featuring Manhattan Prosecutor Alexandra (Alex) Cooper, a character based on Fairstein’s life as a prosecutor. The tenth Cooper novel, Killer Heat, will be hitting bookstore shelves in early 2008.

In addition to a role as a media consultant with the major networks, Fairstein was also the source of inspiration for producer Dick Wolf as he developed the television show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 1999. The drama’s prosecutor, Ms. Alex Cabot (played by Stephanie March) is modeled on Fairstein's career.

Credited with changing case law for a more equitable distribution of justice for victims of violent and sexual crimes, Fairstein will address the issues of economic and social empowerment with the more than 600 guests expected for the Shelter for Abused Women & Children’s luncheon.

A nonprofit organization, the Shelter provides a wide array of program and services to more than 19,400 individuals each year, including face-to-face assistance to some 4,000 women and children victims of domestic violence/intimate partner abuse.

Tickets for the 8th annual Mending Broken Hearts with Hope Luncheon are $300 per person; $1,000 Patron; $3,500 Table Patron. Raffle tickets are $35 each or four for $100. Sponsorship opportunities are available. To participate in this event, please call 239-775-3862.

For more information on the Shelter for Abused Women & Children, please call 239-775-3862.

###

The Shelter for Abused Women & Children helps adult and child victims and survivors of domestic violence through safety, intervention and support; educates the public about domestic violence; and advocates for social change against domestic violence. For more information, please contact us at 239-775-3862, or visit us online at: www.naplesshelter.org

Media Contact: Mary Ann T. Green, mgreen@naplesshelter.org, 239-775-3862, ext. 211