Approximately 10 protesters with the Never Again Campaign protested outside the Bryan County Courthouse Monday morning.
Never Again seeks changes that eliminate second bonds in domestic violence cases, according to Shelley Dunnam, an organizer of the campaign.
“I’m really just a friend, I’m not a victim in this case,” Dunnam said. “I’m a friend who’s tired of watching my friends die. We are here today because we are tired of the systems failing our domestic violence survivors. We have five lives that we have lost in Bryan County in the last five years under the same judicial system, the same D.A. and we are asking for change before we have to bury another family member.”
Dunnam said a second bond should not be allowed in a violent case.
“We believe that if you have violated and then you’ve been given a protective order and you then violate that protective order you should now have to sit in jail until trial,” Dunnam said.
“You’ve proven that you are not going to be protective, you’re not going to follow the rules. I don’t think that the second bond should be there. We also understand that the perpetrators are set up for failure in a lot of times in that they come from their homes. They go into these situations, they’re kicked out, they’re told that they can’t go back to that home.”
According to Dunnam, in many cases, the perpetrators are already triggered.
“We want to also put in place for those safety precautions while these people are already triggered,” Dunnam said. “Maybe it’s the sheriff that takes them to their house to collect their belongings. Whatever the case may be, we also want to look at both sides of this, both the victim and the perpetrator, to put in a system in place that makes it to where this doesn’t happen again and we don’t have to bury anybody else.”
After the protest, Dunnam thanked those who stood in the cold, lending their voices and hearts.
“Today was not just a protest — it was a tribute,” Dunnam said. “We honored the lives lost to systemic failure. We spoke their names. We remembered who they were beyond headlines and case numbers — mothers, daughters, sons, friends, deeply loved and deeply missed.
“We hold their families close in this moment. Your grief matters. Your voices matter. Your loved ones matter. This community showed up today to say clearly: Their lives were not expendable, and their absence is not acceptable.
“Never Again is a promise to remember, to demand accountability, and to protect those still at risk.”
