Towards Justice for Victims: A New Role for Victim Impact Statements in Sexual Violence Cases

<p>This dissertation argues that the current approach to victim impact statements in New Zealand serves victims poorly. The primary purpose of victim impact statements is to provide information about harm, in order to assist the sentencing judge to assess the seriousness of the offending. This limits the extent to which victim impact statements can meet victims’ needs and protect their interests. This dissertation proposes a new role for victim impact statements (with a focus on their use in sexual violence cases). It argues that the purpose of victim impact statements should be to meet victims’ needs for recognition, acknowledgement and assistance with recovery, and to protect victims’ interests in reparation and prevention of further harm from the offender and from the sentence imposed on the offender. Meeting these needs and protecting these interests is necessary to provide justice for victims. Finally, this dissertation argues that victim impact statements should not be used to assess the seriousness of the offending.</p>

Towards Justice for Victims: A New Role for Victim Impact Statements in Sexual Violence Cases

<p>This dissertation argues that the current approach to victim impact statements in New Zealand serves victims poorly. The primary purpose of victim impact statements is to provide information about harm, in order to assist the sentencing judge to assess the seriousness of the offending. This limits the extent to which victim impact statements can meet victims’ needs and protect their interests. This dissertation proposes a new role for victim impact statements (with a focus on their use in sexual violence cases). It argues that the purpose of victim impact statements should be to meet victims’ needs for recognition, acknowledgement and assistance with recovery, and to protect victims’ interests in reparation and prevention of further harm from the offender and from the sentence imposed on the offender. Meeting these needs and protecting these interests is necessary to provide justice for victims. Finally, this dissertation argues that victim impact statements should not be used to assess the seriousness of the offending.</p>

VICTIM-IMPACT STATEMENTS AT THE SENTENCING STAGE: GIVING CRIME VICTIMS A VOICE

The principle of proportionality seeks to limit, as far as possible, arbitrary punishment, and to achieve a balance by requiring courts to consider the sometimes competing interests of the state and the accused person. These competing interests have a missing link – the interests of the crime victim. Unless all relevant information is placed before court, including that of crime victims, the court will not arrive at a just punishment. There can be justice only when the interests of not only the offender and the state, but of the victim as well, are considered and balanced against one another. The introduction of victim-impact statements is one of the means by which the said balance may be achieved. Some of the established democracies have recognized the value of introducing victim-impact statements before the sentencing of offenders: South Africa might do well to follow in their footsteps. I believe that the use of thesestatements at appropriate stages of the trial would contribute to positive public perceptions about our criminal-justice system, and promote victim satisfaction with the criminal justice which is perceived by some to be heavily biased in favour of accused persons.This paper seeks to highlight the plight of the crime victim within South Africa’s criminal-justice system, and to add a voice to calls for the introduction of victim-impact statements during the sentencing stage in a criminal trial.

21. Sentencing Procedure and the General Principles of Sentencing

This chapter explains the procedure on passing sentence and the general principles that govern a court’s decision when passing sentence. It discusses the role of the Crow Prosecution Service (CPS) on sentence; the procedure on sentencing; hierarchy of sentences; sentencing aims; the basis of sentencing under the Criminal Justice Act 2003; Sentencing Council for England and Wales; sentencing guidelines in the Crown Court; how the defence solicitor assesses the seriousness of an offence; Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines (MCSGs); the importance of the pre—sentence report, personal offender mitigation; discount for timely guilty pleas; the Crown Court’s sentencing powers; victim impact statements; and taking other offences into consideration.

Victims and Prosecutors

This chapter explores crime victims’ experiences in U.S. trial courts in relation to the passage, application, and adjudication of state and federal victims’ rights legislation (VRL). It reviews victims’ current rights established through legislation and case law: to privacy, information, and notification; to be present; and to be heard in pre-trial hearings, in trials, in plea bargaining, and in victim impact statements. It reviews qualitative research documenting how and why prosecutorial discretion is often exercised to limit victims’ participation in trials and pleas, highlighting incentives for emotion management. It also reviews proposals, which are counter to this standard, designed to achieve greater victim participation and to produce higher quality testimony, including extensive pre-court preparation and courtroom intermediaries. It assesses the efficacy of practices to protect victims from secondary victimization in court, including shielding (close circuit video and screens) and support dogs. It explores use of private attorneys to (1) ensure that prosecutors and judges comply with VRL and (2) pursue victim-directed, private prosecution of sexual assault in the United States and elsewhere. It concludes that the promise of VRL—to provide therapeutic justice outcomes, achieve victim satisfaction, and enact procedural justice—is yet to be realized in the United States; however, an evidence-based approach toward prosecutorial practice would be advantageous for victims.

The Language of Harm: What the Nassar Victim Impact Statements Reveal About Abuse and Accountability

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