I recently wrote a blog post on how survivors of abuse can take back their power. I offered many suggestions including supporting yourself and empowerment. Part of honoring yourself is to hold others accountable for their actions towards you that created a loss in your life. One way to hold offenders accountable for their actions in the criminal justice process is to write a Victim Impact Statement (VIS) to the court. If you have been a victim of crime and involved in a criminal case, all fifty states allow Victim Impact Statements to be expressed at some point in the criminal justice process. Sometimes a Victim Impact Statement will be presented to the judge in a pre-sentence report, at sentencing, or at parole hearings. The most important impact of a Victim Impact Statement is the opportunity for victims to focus the attention to the cost of crime on human beings and allows victims a substantial part in the judicial process especially if the victim reads the statement to the court. This is extremely powerful.
Victim Impact Statements can include the following:
-Knowledge of any treatment, medical or psychological, that resulted from the crime.
-Restitution desires.
-The victim's opinion about sentencing and their thoughts about what is appropriate punishment.
*Note there are some guidelines on what can be expressed in a VIS and it depends on the jurisdiction. Typically, each court will have a form victims can use or a list of guidelines. Many courts have Crime Victim Advocates that can assist you through the process and help you decifer the pros and cons to submitting a statement, and what to include.
Victim Impact Statements not only assist judges at sentencing but can raise awareness of victimization on a societal level, and can be closure or healing for some victims of crime. I've always believed that Victim Impact Statements create a sense of awareness in the court system. If a victim decides to read their statement in court, we learn the true impact of crime on our communities and members and this may instigate change either personally or systematically. Despite the positive aspects of Victim Impact Statements, there are a few downfalls that victims should consider. Writing and presenting a statement to the court can trigger or drain you emotionally. You could be re-victimized by reliving the events of the crime. The process could also disturb your peace and healing process. This is especially true if the crime is related to abuse, rape or a domestic violence situation. Many victims of domestic violence don't like to write a VIS because they often have children and custody issues and don't feel comfortable talking about the truth of the incident(s) on record; the defense attorney and defendant receive a copy. Part of standing in your power is honoring your truth and if participating in a VIS is not beneficial to your situation than that is your choice. The power of choice is part of taking back your power!
One of my first criminal cases, where I was involved in the process, was a case where a victim of domestic violence got her orbital bone crushed by her abuser. He hit her in the eye with a metal ball which caused serious injury; the blow knocked out her eyeball. She had to have extensive cosmetic surgery and a prosetheic eye. She suffered extreme emotional abuse and obtained a physical deformity. She was a victim that prosecutors wanted to write a VIS for the court because of her severe injuries and trauma. However, the defendant was probably going to take a plea due to the fact this was his first offense. The victim refused to write a statement and also recanted her story. Despite the severity of her injuries and felonious aggravated assault, the defendant was offered a plea and significantly less jail time. It is always the victim's decision to write one. I spent a lot of time talking to her and educated her on power and control. She was introduced to follow-up care, but she was too caught up in the cycle of violence to cooperate. She was very wishy washy and also battling her own demons which I have compassion for. Unfortunately, when victims refuse to cooperate with investigations or the criminal justice process, offenders are not held accountable to the highest standards; they fall through the cracks. That's called victimization people. Also, I’m going to be real; there were some prosecutors, back in the day, that were a bunch of cowards. Their favorite words were, "No likelihood of conviction" in domestic violence cases. Prosecutors would either forward cases to city prosecutors for misdemeanor charges or plea out. What a loss. I think some of the newer prosecutors were not very experienced trial attorneys and not really familiar with educating jurors on domestic violence. In this particular case, I feel the fear of a jury not understanding the dynamics of abuse and the victim being uncooperative at times overpowered their decision making. I wasn't involved in their process of charging; I can only assume that the results of this case pleaing out was on them not her. Arizona is a state where you can prosecute without the cooperation of the victim. This particular victim needed someone to fight for her because she wasn’t capable. We should’ve done better. There were a lot of harsh words being exchanged between the detectives and prosecution about this case. This was a case where if the system worked like a well oiled machine, a VIS would have definitely made an impact at sentencing but that is not the reality of the criminal justice process. It is flawed. We do our best to make things better for victims of crime through education and awareness so they can receive justice. Not every victim will see the value of making a VIS or cooperating and we cannot pass judgement if they refuse. Despite the outcome, good systematic changes occurred because of this case.
Conclusion
Victim Impact statements are useful and productive tools for judges to use at sentencing, and for giving a victim a voice during a criminal case. It is important to understand that victims need to have a reasonable expectation to the impact of their victimization on judges. Judges also have to consider sentencing guidelines and what is disclosed in the pre-sentence report which contains the defendant's past and criminal history. Most Victim Impact Statements can be written and submitted online. Also, there are other options if you do not want to submit a VIS to the court. You can also just write one to yourself. Just the act of writing your thoughts and feelings about the trauma can help in your healing and releasing what no longer serves you. It's also a testament of the strength and courage you still have and that the defendant could not take from you. It is always your decision to make and only you can execute your "right to be heard". If you want more information on Victim Impact Statements for US and Canada visit the following:
*Note I am not familiar with Canadian laws and guidelines will differ. .https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/cj-jp/victims-victimes/factsheets-fiches/victim-victime.html
Peace, Love, and Happiness- The Victim Assistant
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