Victim Legal Rights - Dr. Kendra Bowen PDF

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Dr. Kendra Bowen...

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Dr. Kendra Bowen Victimology Thursday, November 8, 2018 Victim Legal Rights Crime victim’s compensation  Victims are usually innocent parties in a criminal situation  Victims suffer mentally, physically, emotionally, and monetarily  Helps victims pay for expenses, such as: o Counseling o Medical bills o Funeral costs o Clean-up costs o Temporary relocation  Attorney general’s office is about 6 weeks behind with reimbursements  Offenders on parole are supposed to pay $8 a month to the fund o Parole authorities keep up with this  Restitution is sometimes required of other offenders not on parole, just depends o Can go directly to victims or to the compensation fund  By law, the state requires that victims pay the fund back if they get money from the offender in a civil suit case  Crimes that are excluded from this fund: o Theft/burglary o Crimes that are not reported  Only 50% of serious crimes are reported to police Important developments  Who should be on the task force o Law enforcement officials o Someone who knows about victims o Medical professionals  Find info about victims o How they’re affected by crime o Took about a year o Report is online Who is included as ‘victims’  Stats are for states that participate Victims right to notice  Contact information of the detective/others working on the case as well as the prosecutor’s office  Updates on the case at all o Includes offender release/escape, parole, etc. Right to be present and heard  Most states that have parole allow the victim to give a statement Right to protection

No-contact orders o Like a restraining order but not about distance o Can’t contact victim in any kind of way  All states should have laws requiring no-contact orders and space for the victims and their families Right to a speedy trial  More vulnerable victim populations are made a priority Right to restitution/right to privacy  At this point in time, restitution is becoming a societal priority Rights when defendant is mentally ill  When ruled not guilty due to insanity or incompetent to stand trial, they are sent to a mental health facility  Stay there until deemed safe for society  Average person with insanity plea actually is mentally ill Current controversies/issues  Average person only serves 50-60% of their sentence o Sometimes victims aren’t notified of offender’s release until after they have been released ...