UPDATE: The family of Sandra White is expected to attend the Thursday tree planting, according to an email from the Henry County District Attorney's Office.
ORIGINAL STORY: Following up on a tree planted last year as part of National Crime Victims' Rights Week, the Henry County District Attorney's Office plans this year to install bushes.
District Attorney Darius Pattillo’s office will plant autumn belle azalea shrubs Thursday along the banks of Big Springs Park in McDonough. The bushes will be planted around the memorial tree the office planted at the park in 2018.
“This is part of our efforts to create a peaceful place for victim and survivors of crime to be reflect and enjoy nature,” Pattillo said in a statement.
The ceremony, planned for 11 a.m. at Big Springs Park, 64 Veterans’ Drive, will include comments from Pattillo, Henry County Solicitor-General Pamela Bettis and McDonough Police Chief Preston Dorsey.
The action comes as Henry County is still trying to heal after
Sandra White, 39, and her son, Arkeyvion, 16, were killed last week at a home in the Eagle Ridge subdivision in Stockbridge. Sandra White, who was pregnant at the time of her death, and her son were allegedly shot to death by Anthony Bailey, a man White had been dating.
Bailey also was killed after turning the gun on himself in a standoff with police that lasted 16 hours.
National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, which runs from April 7-13, is a national movement to promote the rights of and services for victims of crime.
