Pamela Sue Rogers Lychner (November 9, 1958 – July 17, 1996) was an American real estate agent from

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...

Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown Houston, Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely ...

''. October 23, 1997
1
who promoted the "Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996" bill. She was killed in the explosion of TWA Flight 800.

Life

Lychner, a former

flight attendant A flight attendant is a member of the aircrew whose primary responsibility is ensure the safety of passengers in the cabin of an aircraft across all stages of flight. Their secondary duty is to see to the comfort of passengers. Flight attenda ...

for

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...

(TWA), bought a vacant house to sell in 1990. When she and her husband, Joe, visited it to meet who they believed was a prospective buyer, a workman from a cleaning company named William David Kelley appeared and told them that he forgot to clean under the sink. Later he tried to tear off her clothes; Joe held him as she called for help. Kelley, a convicted rapist and child molester, carried a knife and duct tape on his person and a blanket in his

pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a Truck_classification#Table_of_US_GVWR_classifications, light or medium duty truck that has an enclosed cabin (truck), cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (th ...

. He

plea bargain A plea bargain, also known as a plea agreement or plea deal, is a legal arrangement in criminal law where the defendant agrees to plead guilty or no contest to a charge in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor. These concessions can include a ...

ed and received a sentence of 20 years for "aggravated kidnapping with intent to commit sex assault.""Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

''. October 23, 1997
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After the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) sent a letter to the Lychner residence, notifying the household that the state nominated Kelley as a candidate for early release, Lychner decided to become an advocate for victim's rights, founding the group "Justice For All." As its president, she lobbied for repealing mandatory release laws, and in favor of registration of

sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a Sex and the law, sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convi ...

s, as well as the construction of more

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

s. Lisa Gray of the ''

'' said that Lychner would "get up at 4 a.m. to work on the Justice For All newsletter; at night, she'd fall asleep at the computer, and Joe would carry her to bed." Lychner promoted and, according to U.S. Senators

Phil Gramm William Philip Gramm (born July 8, 1942) is an American economist and politician who represented Texas in both chambers of United States Congress, Congress. Though he began his political career as a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Gr ...

and

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

, crafted the language of a bill, later called the "Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996," that established a federal database for United States sex offenders.Background Information on the Act and Its Amendments
" ''

Bureau of Justice Assistance The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, within the United States Department of Justice. BJA provides leadership and assistance to local criminal justice programs that improve and reinforce the nat ...

'' of the ''

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...

''. Accessed October 30, 2008. In addition, the bill required sex offenders who move to new locations to contact authorities; if they fail to do so they face fines and prison sentences. At the time of her death in 1996, Pam was married to Joe, and they had two daughters, 10-year-old Shannon and 8-year-old Katie. They lived in Spring Valley Village, Texas in

.Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

''. Thursday October 23, 1997
5
Retrieved on July 4, 2010.

Death

Shannon had copied

Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, ; ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of Impressionism painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During his ...

's paintings, and Pam wanted her to see his former garden,

Fondation Monet in Giverny The Fondation Claude Monet is a nonprofit that manages the house and gardens of Claude Monet in Giverny, France, where Monet lived and painted for 43 years. Monet was inspired by his gardens, and spent years transforming them, planting thousan ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. They had planned a three-day trip.Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

''. October 23, 1997
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Pam, Shannon, and Katie flew from

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and then connected to TWA Flight 800 bound for Charles de Gaulle International Airport near Paris, on July 17, 1996. N93119, the Boeing 747-100 used for Flight 800, exploded off the coast of

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

, killing all of the passengers and crew, including the three Lychners. Joe advocated for an investigation of Flight 800. According to him, Pam's and Katie's bodies were recovered during the first night of rescue efforts. On July 22, five days after the crash, the

Suffolk County, New York Suffolk County ( ) is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of New York, constituting the eastern two-thirds of Long Island. It is bordered to its west by Nassau County, to its east by Gardiners Bay and the open Atlantic Ocean, to its no ...

coroners had identified Pam's body, and he was summoned to confirm the identification. Days later Katie's body was positively identified, and on July 28 Shannon's body was recovered. All three received burial in a family plot near

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

.Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

''. October 23, 1997
5
The

National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...

(NTSB) concluded that a flammable mixture of air and

aviation fuel Aviation fuels are either petroleum-based or blends of petroleum and synthetic fuels, used to power aircraft. They have more stringent requirements than fuels used for ground applications, such as heating and road transport, and they contain add ...

vapors in the center wing fuel tank exploded, destroying the aircraft.

Legacy

After Pam, Shannon, and Katie died, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

passed the "Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996." On July 15, 1997, Spring Valley Village dedicated a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

statue of her, Shannon, and Katie, called "Love's Embrace," at the city hall. After it was posted, visitors read the plaques, left roses, and touched the bronze. Joe often visited it. Lisa Gray of the ''

'' described it as "shamelessly emotional, a monument to a secular saint and her daughters."Gray, Lisa. "After the Crash." ''

''. Thursday October 23, 1997
6
Retrieved on July 4, 2010. Pam Lychner State Jail, a state jail for men operated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Atascocita, unincorporated Harris County, east of Humble, was named after her. In July 1995,(). Texas Department of Criminal Justice. October 2000. Retrieved on July 2, 2010. it had been opened as Atascocita State Jail. After Pam's death, the TDCJ board unanimously voted to rename it after her.''Texas Dept of Criminal Justice''. '' Texas Department of Criminal Justice''. ''Turner Publishing Company''. 2004
96
A duplicate of the statue in Spring Valley Village exists near it.
." '' Texas Department of Criminal Justice''. Accessed September 12, 2008.

References

External links

Justice for All
* Gray, Lisa.
After the Crash
" ''

''. Thursday October 23, 1997. *
Time hasn't dulled survivor's pain
" ''

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

''. January 17, 1997. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lychner, Pam 1958 births 1996 deaths Accidental deaths in New York (state) Crime victim advocates People from Houston Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1996 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States TWA Flight 800 Flight attendants Trans World Airlines people