NCJ Number
167235
Date Published
1997
Length
0 pages
Annotation
This video presents a panel discussion of issues related to the need for and provision of mental health services to crime victims.
Abstract
Anne Seymour, Public Safety Consultant and national expert in the field of crime victim assistance, hosts a panel discussion that involves two nationally recognized experts in the field of mental health: Dr. Dean Kilpatrick and Dr. Connie Best. The panel discusses five learning objectives: why the juvenile and criminal justice systems should be concerned with crime-related psychological trauma of crime victims; identification of the major types of immediate and short-term trauma associated with crime victimization; factors related to victims' healing and recovery; and how the criminal and juvenile justice systems can address the needs of traumatized crime victims. In discussing why the juvenile and criminal justice systems should be concerned with crime-related psychological trauma of crime victims, the panel members advise that untreated psychological trauma in crime victims impedes their cooperation in case processing; psychological trauma affects memory, accurate recall, and motivation to cooperate with the criminal justice system. A discussion of the types of immediate and short-term trauma associated with crime victimization notes that post-traumatic stress disorder is common among crime victims, particularly those who are sexually assaulted, are family survivors of murder, and have been victimized by other forms of violent crime. Such victims experience ongoing fear, the reliving of the crime, anxiety, and anger. Depression can be a long-term consequence of criminal victimization. In discussing factors that relate to victims' healing and recovery, the panel considers the uniqueness of each victim's needs, the availability of mental health services, referral services, and the importance of providing counseling by professionals familiar with crime victims' needs.