NCJ Number
114303
Date Published
Unknown
Length
56 pages
Annotation
After an overview of the emotional and material needs of victims and witnesses, this book outlines the general services provided by victim/witness programs, presents guidelines for planning a victim/witness program, and describes several projects that deliver crime victim services.
Abstract
Victim services encompass emergency services, counseling services, police-related services, court services, and claims assistance. Some goals of witness projects are to aid witnesses in functioning within the criminal justice system, provide notification and supportive services to witnesses, increase witness access to supportive services, and treat witnesses humanely. In developing victim/witness services, human service agencies must first identify existing victim/witness services. This is followed by a determination of the policies that will govern the program, the level at which the program will operate (e.g., system-based or community-based), the type of response the agency will offer, and the type of services the program will provide. Other issues that must be addressed in developing a program are the program's target population, the referral sources for obtaining clients, and the staff/volunteer functions. The programs described are the Pima County Victim/Witness Program in Tucson, Ariz.; the Montgomery County Emergency Service in Norristown, Pa.; the Alachua County Crisis Center in Gainesville, Fla.; and the Fairfax County Mobile Crisis Unit in Fairfax, Va. 32 footnotes.