"That means he will be eligible for parole in 20 years," she said. "I looked into his eyes, and he seemed like an evil person, completely soulless. I don't know if 20 years will rehabilitate him."
"I don't like to think about them," she added, "but those four people have damaged so much of our lives. I wonder if they even realize it."
She plans to take the legal exams required to get into law school in June, and to complete her MBA from Johns Hopkins in August. She's also working with her General Assembly representative, state Sen. George W. Della, to craft a piece of legislation dubbed Zach's Law.
FOR THE RECORD - An article in yesterday's Maryland section provided inaccurate information about Trayvon Ramos, a 16-year-old involved in the beating of Zachary Sowers in Patterson Park nine months ago. Ramos was charged as an adult and pleaded guilty in the attack. He had no trial; none of the other suspects testified against him.
The Sun regrets the error.
"It addresses all of the issues that have somehow touched Zach's case that I've had to deal with that I couldn't believe I had to deal with," she said. "There was so much that felt wrong to me."
Those issues range from difficulties accessing Zach's credit card account to the inability of prosecutors to charge his attackers with murder despite his very slim recovery chances. She wants judges to require that the courtroom remain silent when victims confront those convicted of harming them or a loved one. Instead of listening while she told them of the harm they'd done, Zach's attackers talked to their attorneys and defendants' family members walked out of the courtroom, she said.
"It was rude," she said. "That was my time to say my piece."
She and Zach have received several wedding invitations recently, including one from Zach's sister, who is getting married in October. "Life still goes on," Anna said. "But it's hard. We all still hope for a miracle and pray it will happen."
They never told anyone, but she and Zach used to talk about moving somewhere far from Baltimore as an adventure while they were young and before they had children.
"There is a little part of me that wants to go out West," she said, "because it's fulfilling a dream that Zach and I shared."
chris.emery@baltsun.com
