Miami, FL— Congresswoman Frederica Wilson (D-FL) will be joined by Brandi Sims, the sister of murdered foster child Rilya Wilson, to attend the sentencing hearing for Geralyn Graham, at 10:00am, Tuesday, February 12, 2013, at the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building in Miami, Florida. Last month, a jury found Graham guilty of abuse and kidnapping in connection with the disappearance and murder of the four year old foster child, who was in Graham’s care when she went missing in 2001. A mistrial was declared on the murder charge against Graham, who faces the possibility of life in prison on the kidnapping charge, 30 years on each of two counts of aggravated child abuse and five years on a child abuse charge. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office is seeking maximum sentences on each charge to run consecutively. Congresswoman Wilson, who has followed this case since Rilya disappeared and been an advocate for her and other foster children, issued the following statement:

“Justice has been served.  I will be present in the courtroom to witness the sentencing of Geralyn Graham for the torture of Rilya. Let Rilya’s death be not in vain, but instead be a call to action to protect the most vulnerable among us: our children.”

“With the conclusion of the trial this week, I will be reintroducing the Rilya Wilson Act, a bipartisan bill that will increase state and federal officials’ cooperation, transparency and vigilance to protect the lives of children in foster care.

During my time in Florida’s Legislature, I was proud to pass the state’s Rilya Wilson Act to ensure that foster children attend school.

The federal version of the Rilya Wilson Act — which has received support from more than 100 bipartisan co-sponsors in Congress — would require state child-welfare agencies to report information on missing or abducted foster children promptly to local law enforcement agencies so that disappearances can be promptly reported to the National Crime Information Center. 

Such simple rules could have saved Rilya.”

Congresswoman Wilson is available for comment.

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U.S. Rep. Frederica S. Wilson is a second-term Congresswoman from Florida representing parts of Northern Miami-Dade and Southeast Broward counties. A former state legislator and school principal, she is the founder of the 5000 Role Models for Excellence Project, a mentoring program for young males at risk of dropping out of school.