Introducing – New Victim’s Blog
Victim’s Voice is a new blog which will become a regular part of the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office webpage. Contributors will include local and national Victim’s Advocates, and, most importantly, crime victims.
But first, a little history about crime victims and their treatment by the criminal justice system in America.
In April, 1982, President Ronald Reagan established the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime. President Reagan charged the members of that Task Force to recognize the plight of those forgotten by the criminal justice system – the innocent victims of crime – and make recommendations to restore balance to the criminal justice system.
They found: “The innocent victims of crime have been overlooked, their pleas for justice have gone unheeded, and their wounds – personal, emotional and financial – have gone unattended.”
Lois Harrington, Chair of the Task Force, wrote the following:
“Something has happened in America: Crime has made victims of us all. Awareness of its danger affects the way we think, were we live, were we go, what we buy, how we raise our children, and the quality of our lives as we age.”
“Every 23 minutes, someone is murdered. Every six minutes a woman is raped. While you read this statement, two people will be robbed in America and two more will be shot, stabbed, or seriously beaten. Yet to truly grasp the enormity of the problem, those figures must be doubled, because more than 50 percent of violent crime goes unreported.”
“The criminals know that the risk of punishment is minuscule. A study of four major states revealed that only 9 percent of violent crimes reported were resolved with the perpetrator being incarcerated.”
“Victims who do survive their attack, and are brave enough to come forward, turn to their government expecting it to do what a good government should – protect the innocent.”
“The American criminal justice system is absolutely dependent on these victims to cooperate and testify. Without their cooperation in reporting and testifying about crime, it is impossible in a free society to hold criminals accountable.”
“When they do come forward to perform this service, they found little protection. They discovered that the system was appallingly out of balance. They learned that somewhere along the way the system lost track of the simple truth that it is supposed to be fair and protect those who obey the law while punishing those who break it.”
“Somewhere along the way, the system simply treated crime victims with institutional disinterest.”
“The neglect of crime victims is a national disgrace.”
In 1985, the Office of the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney established its Crime Victims’ Assistance Program. Our goal was then and continues today, to emphasize the role of the victim in the criminal justice system, in the hope that they will begin to feel that the system works for them – not against them.
Stay tuned for more from Victim’s Voice as we continue an aggressive Quest for Justice.