HILLSDALE — A landmark New Jersey law championed by Hillsdale resident and victims’ rights advocate Rosemarie D’Alessandro quietly marked its 25th anniversary on Nov. 17, underscoring a legacy of legal reform born from the 1973 murder of her 7-year-old daughter, Joan.
The statute, known as the Justice for Victims Law, was signed by Acting Gov. Donald DiFrancesco at Hillsdale Borough Hall on Nov. 17, 2000. It eliminates the statute of limitations for civil actions against individuals convicted of murder, manslaughter, or aggravated manslaughter, allowing victims’ families to pursue wrongful-death damages at any time, even decades after a conviction.
The reform grew directly out of D’Alessandro’s long fight for justice following Joan’s killing. Joan, a Brownie Scout delivering cookies on April 19, 1973, was abducted, raped, and murdered by a neighbor, a former high school science teacher later sentenced to life in prison.
A law with real-world impact
The Justice for Victims Law has been successfully used in two notable cases:
D’Alessandro herself used the law to sue Joan’s killer, winning a $750,000 civil judgment. By the time the case proceeded, the perpetrator had reportedly exhausted his inheritance on legal fees, but the judgment stood as a testament to the law’s intent.
In a separate case, the family of Susan Reeve, murdered in Demarest, won a $10 million settlement from her convicted killer, who remains imprisoned. The Reeve family later donated the award to a scholarship fund.
“It’s there. It’s on the books. Anyone can use it. The people need to know that,” D’Alessandro told Pascack Press.
Part of a broader movement
The 2000 statute was one of several major reforms driven by D’Alessandro’s activism. Joan’s Law, signed at the state level in 1997 and federally in 1998, mandates life in prison for anyone who sexually assaults and murders a child under 14.
It took D’Alessandro 18 months of sustained advocacy to secure passage of the Justice for Victims Law. She continues to support efforts to expand protections for children through legislation such as Paula’s Law, which would raise the protected age from 14 to 18.
Scholars, including Dr. Harold Takooshian of Fordham University and the Manhattan Psychological Association, have described D’Alessandro’s work as a form of homicide activism—a model of resilience and public-service transformation studied in trauma and forensic psychology.
Continuing Joan’s legacy
Through the Joan Angela D’Alessandro Memorial Foundation, also known as Joan’s Joy, D’Alessandro provides child-safety programs, school outreach, and support for children and families affected by trauma.
She speaks frequently at universities, conferences, and community forums, emphasizing that activism begins with voice and courage. “Just remember to stand up,” she often tells students. “Even if you’re scared, if you do it a little bit—even like a pinhole—it will get bigger.”
In 2021 the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office renamed their child advocacy center “Rosemarie’s Room.”
On Nov. 6, D’Alessandro was featured speaker at the Paramus Rotary Club luncheon at Seasons Catering in the Township of Washington. She discussed her book, The Message of Light Amid Letters of Darkness, which intersperses her struggles with dozens of letters the killer wrote while in prison; and her annual child safety festivals downtown in Joan’s memory. “It starts with Joan but it’s about all children all over. Child safety is spreading because of Joan’s legacy,” she said in part.
Joan’s story is also featured in the New York Times bestseller The Killer Across the Table by John Douglas and Mark Olshaker, the true-crime account that inspired the Netflix series Mindhunter.
More information on the Justice for Victims Law, Joan’s story, and ongoing child-safety initiatives is available at JoansJoy.org.