Contact: Office for Victims of Crime (OVC),
202-307-0703
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OUTLINES CHALLENGES OF
SERVING
VICTIMS OF GUN VIOLENCE
Bulletin Makes Recommendations and Describes
Promising Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C. ? The unique nature of gun
violence presents specific challenges in helping victims, according to a new
Justice Department bulletin.? Efforts to
assist victims of gun violence must take into account the fear, anger and
hopelessness that many of these victims experience.?
The bulletin, Working With Victims of Gun
Violence, recommends that programs for victims of gun violence be
broad-based, comprehensive and include victims? families.? Efforts must also focus on young people, who
are a disproportionate share of gun violence victims.
?Gun violence corrodes the fabric of our
communities, traumatizing victims, witnesses, families and neighborhoods,? said
Attorney General John Ashcroft.
?Victims need care that is immediate, thorough and addresses the many
different types of damage that gun violence causes.?
The bulletin, developed by the Justice
Department?s Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), resulted from a meeting of a
working group of various professionals who work with victims of gun violence,
including physicians, social workers, mental health providers, prosecutors,
nurses, lawyers, teachers, school principals, victim compensation
administrators and judges.? Several
gunshot victims and family members of firearm homicide victims also
participated.? OVC convened the working
group as part of the bulletin?s development.
The working group identified several key
factors that separate gun violence from other forms of violence.? Gun violence can more often be random and
can affect more people in a shorter time period.? Victims are more likely to include innocent bystanders.? Residents of neighborhoods with frequent gun
violence are often afraid to leave their homes fearing that they might be
injured by gunfire.
Other factors include the severity of the
nonfatal gun violence injuries, which can alter a victim?s life forever.? Also, many young gun violence victims face
continuing fear, as well as a stigma that they somehow contributed to their
victimization.?
The bulletin emphasizes that efforts to help
gun violence victims take into account their unique circumstances.? One recommendation is the creation of peer
support groups, similar to those available for rape or domestic violence
victims.? Another recommendation is
developing programs focusing on family members, such as the Family Advocacy
Program in Washington, D.C.? This
program helps educate the family members of gun homicide victims about police
and hospital procedures and provides referrals to counseling or pastoral
services.
?? In
addition, the bulletin profiles programs that focus on young gun violence
victims.? Caught in the Crossfire, based
in Oakland, California, provides immediate help to gunshot victims between the
ages of 12 and 19.? Crisis intervention
specialists provide victims with immediate counseling in the hospital and
follow-up services for a year after the injury.? Many of the counselors in Caught in the Crossfire were themselves
gun violence victims.
Given the preponderance of young victims, the
bulletin recommends school-based peer counseling as a way to prevent the anger
and fear surrounding gun violence from leading to more violence.? One such program is Rise Above It, in
Newark, New Jersey, which shows students the long-lasting effects of gunshot
wounds and teaches them skills to deal with anger and prevent fights.
Working With Victims of Gun Violence, as well as information about other OVC
publications, programs and conferences, are available through the OVC Website
at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovcand from the
OVC Resource Center at 1-800/627-6872.
Information about other Office of Justice
Programs (OJP) bureaus and program offices is available at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/.? Media should contact OJP?s Office of Congressional
and Public Affairs at 202/307-0703.? ???
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