Ellen Levin recounts the media's intrusion upon her grief and reporters' indifference to her need to cope with her daughter's death in private. The media also served the defense's strategy by targeting her daughter's character and behavior, so as to make her culpable in her own death. To appeal to the public's appetite for sensationalism and drama, one television program even dramatized its speculations about the events surrounding the murder, including the portrayal of Jennifer Levin as sexually aggressive toward her killer. The author notes that the media's exploitation of tragedy and violence, while being careless with facts and glamorizing the offender, are abuses that incite communities' hostilities rather than produce a sense of hope and well-being. Schools of journalism should focus on these defects in the media system, and journalists who cover crime stories should receive special training in the history and ethical issues of their beat. Editors and publishers should occasionally make decisions based on ethics and responsibility rather than on profits. Treating crime victims with respect, dignity, and compassion is a matter of observing their basic human and civil rights.