Three Students Wield 'Justice For All' Awards From S.C. Co. D.A.

SARATOGA, CA -- Justice will be served and honored in Santa Clara County Monday.

District Attorney Jeff Rosen will give this year’s annual “Justice for All” art awards to three high school students in Santa Clara County Monday, an honor Maia Nantais was so excited about.

Nantais, an 18-year-old senior from Christopher High School in Gilroy, calls her artwork "And Justice For All." The poster features newspaper clippings of the barrage of mass shootings at schools with an embedded image of a youngster's eyes.

The Gilroy resident wanted to call attention to the psyche of those left behind as a result of these mass casualty incidents.

"I wanted to stay away from the politics because I'm so young. I wanted to focus on what the kids must be feeling in whether it's safe to be at school," she told Patch. Nantais found the image of the child with the eyes, and it "kind of stuck with me."

Nantais, who plans to attend Chapman University in Orange after graduation, may put her money management skills to work. She plans to save her $1,000 received from the award. She'll major in business administration with a sideline focus on interior design to use her art skills.

Prospect High School senior Aileen Ra won $1,500 for her first place acrylic painting - a powerful portrait illustrating the need for change in the wake of the Parkland school shooting in Florida last year that left 17 dead. The painting’s hashtag is #NEVERAGAIN.

"To be honest, I was inspired to continue trying more art contests before I graduated. I didn’t apply for many art contests because I wasn’t aware of them. However, my art teacher recommended me this contest for another try. However, I never realized that I had the chance of taking this award-winning spot with this piece. I realized that I had the ability to create art that would give a message and hopefully make change in this world," Ra said.

The student's poster will be used in a countywide campaign in support of common-sense gun regulations and strategies to take illegal guns off the streets. Ra and the other top winners will be presented with their awards by Rosen at noon in the District Attorney's Office at 70 West Hedding St. in San Jose.

“Children should be seen - and heard," Rosen said. “Young people across the country are speaking out against gun violence. The D.A.’s Office is listening.”

The “Justice for All” poster contest, open to all local high school students, is an annual event to raise awareness on topics of public safety. The focus of this year’s contest was “Post-Parkland: Students Speak Out Against School Shootings.”

Ra, who hopes to be an illustrator after graduation, said she felt somewhat removed from the
seemingly distant school shootings until a history class discussion and a school march got her
thinking about the issues, the District Attorney's Office noted.

“Now, I believe students should take this chance as an opportunity to make change for our
future. We have a reason to stop this act from occurring again, and we should continue to speak out until the peace is made.”

Emily Tran from Evergreen Valley High School in San Jose won $500 for third place. All of the participants will receive Starbucks gift cards.

Their work will be displayed all week in the county Breezeway at 70 W. Hedding St. in San Jose.