Justice For Victims Of Crime

This book analyses the rights of crime victims within a human rights paradigm, and describes the inconsistencies resulting from attempts to introduce the procedural rights of victims within a criminal justice system that views crime as a matter between the state and the offender, and not as one involving the victim. To remedy this problem, the book calls for abandoning the concept of crime as an infringement of a state’s criminal laws and instead reinterpreting it as a violation of human rights. The state’s right to punish the offender would then be replaced by the rights of victims to see those responsible for violating their human rights convicted and punished and by the rights of offenders to be treated as accountable agents.

The protocol outlines what you can expect throughout the criminal justice process, from the time you report a crime through the police investigation, court proceedings and, if the accused is found guilty, provincial and federal corrections and the National Parole Board. The protocol also tells what is expected of you and what else you can do when you are in contact with the criminal justice system.

A critical examination of the dramatic changes in criminal justice over the last two decades and the first full-length study of the law and politics of criminal justice in the era of the Charter and victims? rights.

Injustice often knocks twice for the one in four adults who will become victims of crime this year and for the one in three women sexually assaulted during their lifetime only to further endure the uncertainty of a daunting legal system. This book prepares readers to advocate for their rights as victims of crimes, offering the truth about laws currently in place that often fail to offer support by providing assistance and protection. By empowering taxpayers, voters and (potential) victims of crime, this short but valuable guide will help shift our system from one of neglect to one of respect and support. It is time to make the changes to meet the needs of the victims of crime in the community and guarantee their rights through the courts.

Justice for Victims brings together the world’s leading scholars in the fields of study surrounding victimization in a pioneering international collection. This book focuses on the current study of victims of crime, combining both legal and social-scientific perspectives, articulating both in new directions and questioning whether victims really do have more rights in our modern world. This book offers an interdisciplinary approach, covering large-scale (political) victimization, terrorist victimization, sexual victimization and routine victimization. Split into three sections, this book provides in-depth coverage of: victims' rights, transitional justice and victims' perspectives, and trauma, resilience and justice. Victims' rights are conceptualised in the human rights framework and discussed in relation to supranational, international and regional policies. The transitional justice section covers victims of war from those caught between peace and justice, as well as post-conflict justice. The final section focuses on post-traumatic stress, connecting psychological and anthropological perceptions in analysing collective violence, mass victimization and trauma. This book addresses challenging and new issues in the field of victimology and the study of transitional and restorative justice. As such, it will be of interest to researchers, practitioners and students interested in the fields of victimology, transitional justice, restorative justice and trauma work.

Restorative justice aims to address the consequences of crime by encouraging victims and offenders to communicate and discuss the harm caused by the crime that has been committed. In the majority of cases, restorative justice is facilitated by direct and indirect dialogue between victims and offenders, but it also includes support networks and sometimes involves professionals such as police, lawyers, social workers or prosecutors and judges. In theory, the victim is a core participant in restorative justice and the restoration of the harm is a first concern. In practice, questions arise as to whether the victim is actively involved in the process, what restoration may entail, whether there is a risk of secondary victimisation and whether the victim is truly at the heart of the restorative response, or whether the offender remains the focal point of attention. Using a combination of victimological literature and empirical data from a European research project, this book considers the role and the position of the victim in restorative justice practices, focusing on legislative, organisational and institutional frameworks of victim-offender mediation and conferencing programmes at a national and local level, as well as the victims’ personal needs and experiences. The findings are essential reading for academics and students engaged in the study of justice, victimology and law. The publication will also be valuable to policymakers and professionals such as social workers, lawyers and mediators.

"The rights, status and treatment of sexual assault victims has emerged as a significant 21st-century concern, occupying the forefront of legal commentary on international policy agendas. This book explores the extent to which reforms that offer victims enhanced rights to information and participation across England and Wales, Ireland and South Australia can address sexual assault victims' procedural and substantive justice concerns. Informed by the voices of 26 high-level criminal justice professionals, legal stakeholders and victim support workers, and a quantitative dataset, this book also considers whether legal representation can address some of the problems of the prosecution process for sexual assault victims in Victoria and, indeed, in other adversarial jurisdictions that employ similar legislative frameworks. While acknowledging the value of victim-focused reforms, this book contends that cultural changes to the ways in which sexual assault victims are perceived and treated are necessary in order to improve victims' experiences of the legal process. Reconceptualising the role of sexual assault victims from 'witnesses' to 'participants' will also increase the likelihood that victims' rights and interests will be considered alongside those of the state and the accused. This book situates its findings within broader debates about the role, rights and treatment of sexual assault victims in adversarial justice systems and outlines prospects for the transfer of policy and practice between jurisdictions. Adversarial Justice and Victims' Rights will interest academic and policy stakeholders engaged in criminology, law and socio-legal studies, as well as undergraduate and postgraduate students researching sexual violence and victims' access to justice"--