Mother of murdered woman targets sexual violence
Alexandra Zapp murdered by Paul Leahy, a repeat sex offender
It has been 10 years since Alexandra "Ally" Zapp was brutally murdered at a Bridgewater, Mass., rest stop.
"I just remember her," said her mother Andrea Casanova. "Beautiful, funny, intelligent, great smile. Very strong moral compass. Just a good person. Just a really special person who really wanted to give back to the world."
In fact, in July 2002, Zapp was on her way home to Newport, R.I., from a charity event in Boston, when she was murdered inside the women's restroom along Route 24.
Paul Leahy, a repeat sex offender, stabbed the 30-year-old Zapp 27 times.
It was a crime shocking not only for its brutality, but for highlighting loopholes in the state's sex offender laws.
In the days and months after the brutal murder, Zapp's mother began to focus on the bigger picture of how this could happen.
In 2004, Casanova successfully fought to close a loophole in the state's sexually dangerous persons law.
Now the Ally Foundation has set its sights on improving the national approach to sex offenders through a partnership with the Rand Corporation to establish a think tank dedicated to preventing sexual violence
"What the institute will do is gather all the research on sexual violence and sexual offenses and what works and what doesn't work," Casanova said.
The Ally Foundation is launching a major fundraising initiative in Boston with a goal of raising $300,000 to establish the ALLY Institute at Rand.
"Alexandra was just a very caring person and I know we can't look back to the past. We can't change that," said Casanova.
"But we can approach the future much more intelligently and that's what our mission is. Not just for tougher laws, because tougher laws don't always make sense, but more intelligent laws. She left us with a huge legacy and a lot to do."
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