VICTIM

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In most cases, victims of planning crime may never recover damages, their lost lives, or see justice done.  The police will not prosecute, for they are funded by the local authority - a clear conflict of interest.  They will not have the funds to litigate and legal aid simply does not exist.  In addition, no lawyer will take a planning case pro-bono.

 

 

 

Nelson says: "I'm a victim so I know what you're going through"

 

 

You can complain all you like to the council concerned, but they will deny everything and wear you down.  So too, will the Local Government Ombudsman and the District Auditor.  All of these so called checks and balances are simply for show.  In fact, they exist to wear you down more, to take your last ounce of energy, when you should perhaps be concentrating your fire are the culprits.

 

We would suggest you email every MP and every local member of your council. Why not set up a website of your own, or let us have the dirt on your council. We will post up the facts for you, provided you let us have the information electronically, as a word document, or good quality scans of photographs and newspaper cuttings.  Tell us the story in your own words.  Other than that, you could contact one of the victim support groups below - and whatever you decide - the very best of luck.  NK

 

 

 

VICTIM SUPPORT

 

Victim Support is a charity in the United Kingdom which aims to help victims and witnesses of crime by raising awareness of their needs and by delivering dedicated services to them. It was established in 1974. It is a national charity with branches in every community and each criminal court in England and Wales.

 

In 2004-2005 it offered help to around 1.3 million victims and almost 400,000 witnesses. Victim Support delivers three services. In the community Victim Support branches help people in the aftermath of crime by talking over how they are feeling and by providing practical help, like applying for compensation. In the criminal courts Victim Support provides the Witness Service which offers emotional and practical support to all victims, defence and prosecution witnesses, and their family and friends. It also provides Victim Supportline (0845 30 30 900), which is a telephone helpline for victims, witnesses and family and friends of victims and witnesses. Its services are delivered by specially selected and trained volunteers, of which there are around 9,500 in England and Wales.

 

The charity receives funding from the Home Office, and also relies on raising money through corporate and individual donations. Its national office is in Kennington, London. Its Chief Executive is Gillian Guy.

 

The rights and needs of victims and witnesses, as distinct from the interests of justice or the rights of the accused have, through the discipline of victimology become ever more identified over the past thirty years. Victim Support argued in its policy report, Rights for Victims of Crime (1995), that the criminal justice process treated victims insensitively and that this produced a negative impact on the victim. This process is known as re-victimisation. The report set out five basic rights for victims: the right to compensation; to provide and receive information about the case; to be respected and treated with dignity; to be free from the burden of making decisions relating to the treatment of the accused; and to be protected.

 

In 2002 the charity published Criminal neglect: no justice beyond criminal justice, which called for services across healthcare, housing and finance to respond more effectively to victims' and witnesses' needs. In particular, it has argued for a more sensitive approach from healthcare workers, for reform to the compensation system for victims, and also for a more effective means of relocating after a crime.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Help for victims

 

Victim Support is the independent national charity which helps people cope with crime. We have a network of local branches across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There are separate organisations covering Scotland and the Republic of Ireland. Our trained volunteers offer:

Anyone affected by crime can contact us directly for help. And if you report a crime to the police they will also put you in contact with us, if you want them to.

Our services are free and available to everyone, whether or not the crime has been reported and regardless of when it happened. We are an independent organisation - not part of the police, courts or any other criminal justice agency.

We are in contact with over one and a quarter million victims and witnesses every year.

 

 

Related topics

 

 

Other resources - Links from Victim Support's website

 

Victim Support and its Witness Service provide support to victims of all kinds of crimes including burglary, rape, domestic violence, racist crimes and murder. As well as providing practical and emotional support, we have good knowledge of local contacts and conditions and are able to refer you on to other appropriate organisations if you want. Contact your local branch of Victim Support or Witness Service for more information.

 

This page has links to other useful sources of information. But please note that we are unable to guarantee the accuracy of content on other organisations' websites or the quality of their services.

  • Crime and criminal justice - government agencies

  • Crime and criminal justice - charities and non-governmental organisations

  • Crimes against children

  • Domestic violence

  • Homicide

  • Homophobic crime

  • Racist crimes

  • Road incidents

  • Sexual violence

  • Stalking

  • International

  • Other useful organisations

 

 

Victims' Rights Amendment USA

 

The Victims' Rights Amendment is a provision which has been included in some state constitutions, proposed for others, and additionally has been proposed for inclusion in the United States Constitution. Its provisions vary from state to state but are usually somewhat similar. There are likewise competing versions of the proposed federal amendment.

 

 

The Victims' Rights Movement

 

The "victims' rights" movement began in a response to the spread of two beliefs. The first was the perception that the legal system was more concerned with the protection of the constitutional rights of criminal offenders and alleged offenders than they were the victims of their offenses. This was especially inflamed by numerous lawsuits alleging unconstitutional conditions in many U.S. jails and prisons, and a strong emphasis on the education and rehabilitation of those who were incarcerated, especially beginning in the late 1960s and 1970s. Advocates wanted to see affirmative help for crime victims to be at least as extensive as that provided to the offenders, and for victims to receive compensation from offenders whenever this was practicable. The second stimulus was the spread of the belief, bolstered by prominent stories in the media, that the number of released or paroled offenders returning to attack their original victims or victims' families was increasing, in some cases in retaliation for having reported the original offense.

 

Most state victims' rights amendments provide for the prosecutors to stay in touch with the victims and their families during all stages of prosecution, and to stay in touch with them post-conviction to advise them of events such as parole hearings, applications for pardons or other forms of executive clemency or relief, and similar news. They may require that any pay received by an offender while incarcerated go at least in part to compensate the victims, and that royalties to any creative works such as books, screenplays or similar works created by the offender judged to be derived from the events of the offense be assigned to the victims (though these latter requirements have been challenged as a violation of the constitutional guarantee of free speech).

 

The Federal Amendment

 

The federal victims' rights amendments which have been proposed are similar to the above. The primary contention, and perhaps the main reason that to this point they remain only proposals, is whether they will apply only to federal offenses and the federal system or will mandate all states to adopt similar provisions (the version advocated by at least one very high-profile advocate, John Walsh, host of America's Most Wanted). This second version is offensive to many otherwise conservative "law and order" members of United States Congress because they deem it to be violative of another principle important to conservatives, that of federalism. Advocates of both sides are adamant on their version, and for this reason neither has been passed by either house of Congress as of 2005.

 

 

Text of the Victims' Rights Amendment

 

There have been several different versions of the Victims' Rights Amendment. The text of one version reads as follows:

Section 1. Victims of crimes of violence and other crimes that Congress and the States may define by law pursuant to section 3, shall have the rights to notice of and not to be excluded from all public proceedings relating to the crime; to be heard if present and to submit a statement at a public pre-trial or trial proceeding to determine a release from custody, an acceptance of a negotiated plea, or a sentence; to these rights at a parole proceeding to the extent they are afforded to the convicted offender; to notice of a release pursuant to a public or parole proceeding or an escape; to a final disposition free from unreasonable delay; to an order of restitution from the convicted offender; to have the safety of the victim considered in determining a release from custody; and to notice of the rights established by this article.

Section 2. The victim shall have standing to assert the rights established by this article; however, nothing in this article shall provide grounds for the victim to challenge a charging decision or a conviction, obtain a stay of trial, or compel a new trial; nor shall anything in this article give rise to a claim for damages against the United States, a State, a political subdivision, or a public official; nor shall anything in this article provide grounds for the accused or convicted offender to obtain any form of relief.

Section 3. The Congress and the States shall have the power to enforce this article within their respective federal and state jurisdictions by appropriate legislation, including the power to enact exceptions when required for compelling reasons of public safety.

Section 4. The rights established by this article shall be applicable to all proceedings occurring after ratification of this article.

Section 5. The rights established by this article shall apply in all federal, state, military, and juvenile justice proceedings, and shall also apply to victims in the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States.

 

 

 

 

VICTIMOLOGY

 

Victimology is the study of why certain people are victims of crime and how lifestyles affect the chances that a certain person will fall victim to a crime. The field of victimology can cover a wide number of disciplines, including sociology, psychology, criminal justice, law and advocacy.

 

One particularly well known example of a class at increased risk to varying forms of attacks is the "streetwalker" prostitute. These people have been known anecdotally to have an abnormally high incidence of violent crime, and for said crimes to go unresolved frequently. Victimological studies of the matter might investigate current societal mores (expectations, roles, social status), legal status of prostitutes, typical working/living conditions, statistical analysis of the actual increased risk and secondary risk factors, and the economic activity of streetwalkers.

 

In child sexual abuse victimology is the research paradigm, where child-adult sexuality is considered inherently abusive.

 

The study of victims is multidisciplinary. It does not just cover victims of crime, but also victims of (traffic) accidents, natural disasters, war crimes and abuse of power. The professionals involved in victimology may be scientists, practitioners and policy makers. Studying victims can be done from the perspective of the individual victim but also from an epidemiological point of view.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                         

WE ACCEPT NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY FEATURED LINKS

 

 

 

 

IF YOU HAVE ANY GOOD STORIES TO TELL WE'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM YOU.  WHY NOT BUILD A WEBSITE OF YOUR OWN TO TELL OF PROBLEMS IN YOUR AREA - IT'S YOUR RIGHT.  WE WILL LINK TO YOUR SITE WITH A SHORT SUMMARY.

 

With thanks to Action Groups around the world for the supply of real case history and supporting documents.