'This burden belongs to Rex'
Melissa Cann, sister of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, is speaking.
"When Maureen was identified it [revealed] a truth she was missing forever," Cann said.
Said she lived with survivor’s guilt for more than a decade, replaying every moment in her mind.
"The guilt is not mine to carry and never was," Cann said. "This burden belongs to Rex."
Maureen was a rare soul, someone you didn't come across often, her sister said.
"If Maureen's life had not been taken, I believe she would have gone on to touch countless lives. ... That's the type of person she was," Cann said.
Cann said family members made great efforts to find Maureen. She said the trauma has been passed down to generations of Brainard-Barnes' family.
"When he took her life, he destroyed mine as I knew it," Cann said.
Cann criticized Heuermann for taking pride in being interviewed by the FBI. She said he's merely a "case study," likening him to a "caged animal."
"You are a coward who preyed on vulnerable, innocent women," Cann said.
"You are no longer the one in control of this story," Cann said. "While you tried to silence [Maureen] you failed."
She said her sister lives on through her family.
Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.
'I do think he saw the writing on the wall' Rex Heuermann's Attorney Michael Brown sat down with Newsday following his client's sentencing to discuss the case. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.
