Issues Tearing Our Nation's Fabric The Center for Reclaiming America

[ Previous | Table of Contents | Next ]

Victim’s Rights
Chapter Twenty–Three

Victims of crime, including surviving relatives of homicide victims, have the right to be treated with fairness and dignity throughout the criminal justice process. Subject to the same rules of evidence and procedure which apply to the person accused of or convicted of committing the crime, a victim of a crime, including surviving relatives of a homicide victim, or the victim’s representative, has the right to be informed of, to be present at, and to be heard at all criminal proceedings at which the accused or convicted person has the right to be informed, to be present, and to be heard.

This language, drafted by state legislators and a group of concerned citizen activists, has been put forth as a "Victim Rights Amendment" to the Constitution of the State of Iowa. The purpose: To establish a reasonable and practical guarantee of the rights of victims to be informed, to be present, and to be heard by the community in any and all proceedings involving the perpetrator of an offense. To ensure that these rights are understood and fairly applied, the citizens of the state have asked that this language be added to their Constitution.

By September 1995, 46 states had passed laws requiring registration of sex offenders. Seven of the states only required child sex offenders to register. Several states today require registration of sex offenders for up to 25 years from the date of conviction, and a few states require lifetime registration in certain types of offenses. To date, 29 states also have provisions for DNA testing and registration of important personal data in order to facilitate genetic identification of repeat offenders.

But is all this concern about victim’s rights really necessary? And is it appropriate? Most people feel that crime has become a major problem in the last thirty years. Several studies show that the average person (including those who have not been victimized) lives in a constant state of apprehension about the risk of victimization. Unfortunately, their fears are not misplaced. Total crime in the United States has increased 300 percent since 1965, and violent crime has increased sixfold, to more than 600 percent of the 1965 level.

In 1995 more than 39.6 million crimes were reported. Approx- imately 9.9 million of those involved victims of violence, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. A 1987 study, conducted prior to the most recent crime surge, estimated that 83 percent of Americans (in other words, five out of every six) can expect to be victims of a violent crime at least once in their life. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 87 percent of Americans will have property stolen three or more times, and 99 percent of Americans will be victims of theft at least once in their lives.

Waving the White Flag

The hard cost of crime is estimated at $450 billion a year. But it is impossible to calculate the grief, fear, trauma, physical and emotional injury and other problems which victims must endure. They lose 1.8 million workdays each year, and over $55 million in lost wages. Incarceration of offenders cannot be taken for granted any longer in today’s permissive environment. The multiplication of liberal laws protecting the "rights of the accused" and the "rights of offenders" has taken away any sense of security victims might have counted on a generation ago.

Under the barrage of pro-criminal laws passed since the 1960s, recidivism has become a huge problem, with a staggering percentage of criminals repeating their offenses multiple times. A University of Pennsylvania study shows that 67 percent of the crime in this country is committed by 10 percent of the criminal population. In some cases, victims are even hunted and re-victimized by the perpetrators, either because the law failed to exact a satisfactory penalty, or because thirty years of liberal legislation has convinced criminals that the state cares more about their rights than the rights of their victims.

Former New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly has lamented that, "There is an expectation of crime in our lives. We are in danger of becoming captive to that expectation, and to the new tolerance to criminal behavior, not only in regard to violent crime." Kelley recalled when he first saw cars parked on the streets of Manhattan with signs in the window saying, "No Radio." Rather than express their anger and defiance that thieves could prowl the streets of a major metropolitan city, bashing out car windows and stealing at will, citizens surrendered to the criminals, helpless except for their signs.

The real translation of those "No Radio" signs, said Kelly, was, "Please break into someone’s else’s car; there’s nothing in mine." The signs were evidence of surrender to criminals. Handwritten capitulations. But, says Kelly, "Enough is enough!" Instead of "No Radio" signs, we need new signs that say, "No Surrender!"

The reality of this situation, and the fact that the problem now touches virtually every community, raises serious questions about the character of the nation. The rate of violent crime in the United States, Department of Justice research shows, is worse than in any other industrialized country. The homicide rate here is more than five times that of Europe, and four times that of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Juvenile crime is seven times higher than that of Europe or Japan.

A State of Stress

Law-abiding citizens are under emotional strain as never before. A 1996 survey showed that women are more concerned about becoming victims of crime than men (57 percent to 43.5 percent), and non-whites are more concerned about the risk of victimization than whites (74.8 percent to 46.6 percent). Nationwide, as reported by a Gallup poll, just 19 percent of Americans felt a "great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in the criminal justice system. More than 38 percent reported "some" or "very little" confidence in the system, while 4 percent reported "no confidence at all."

Part of the difficulty of caring for victims of crime is the fact that in a typical year, 63 percent of crimes go unreported. Also, victims are less likely to report a crime if they are familiar with the perpetrator. Victims of violent attack are more likely to report the crime when the offender is a stranger. Young victims, those between 12 and 19, are the least likely to report a criminal offense.

Several studies show that the level of emotional stress in victims, if victimized more than once, increases proportionately with each incident. Even though the stress of a victim, called "post-traumatic stress," exacts a terrible toll on the individual who has been harmed, that stress multiplies as anxiety, anger, fear, and tension radiate through the family. It is not only the victim who suffers, but everyone in the family.

When an entire society is held hostage by violence and crime, as ours is, it should not be surprising that these levels of stress radiate throughout the culture. Even families in quiet upper-middle income neighborhoods are subject to the same tensions. The average child will see 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence on television before adolescence.

Several important studies, including a 94-page report from the National Institute of Mental Health, show that television violence profoundly influences behavior in children, increasing not only fear but the likelihood of violent behavior. Teenagers are 250 percent more likely to be victims of violent crimes than those over age 20. In addition, the rate of homicide deaths among children under age 19 has more than quadrupled over the past thirty years. No wonder kids today are afraid.

A Ministry of Love

The Bible says that God deplores violence but loves those who seek after peace and righteousness. David writes,

The Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates. Upon the wicked He will rain coals; fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the portion of their cup (Psalm 11:5-6).

Solomon tells us, "The violence of the wicked will destroy them, because they refuse to do justice" (Proverbs 21:7). Further, the author of Proverbs says that God despises those who seek after evil:

These six things the Lord hates . . . A proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren (Proverbs 6:16-19).

At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus said He had come to care for the oppressed. Reading from the scroll of Isaiah, he declared His own mission:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18).

To really address the issue of victim’s rights, we need to understand God’s hatred for the wickedness that would cause someone to wantonly victimize another person. God will hold the perpetrator of such a crime responsible, and even if the courts of law should fail to exact a just penalty, there will be a divine and eternal penalty from which the criminal will not escape.

But we also need to understand God’s love for the innocent one who is harmed by such a person. The story of the Good Samaritan should be an example. We can be the hands of Christ when we reach out to the victim of crime to help, to heal, to love, or to share the Word of God. Jesus says, "inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me" (Matthew 25:40). Clearly, Jesus expects us to step in when others step out. We are to love those who have been hurt and wounded. And we can help them seek justice, not only in the long run, but here and now.

First, make sure all crimes are properly reported, even when the victims are hesitant to proceed. The evidence shows that anyone who victimizes one person will likely victimize someone else later. Do whatever you can to stop that person. Secondly, contact a local victim’s assistance program for advice on the best way to ensure that the victim’s rights are being given fair consideration.

Some programs provide escorts to support the victim in court or in meetings with police and attorneys. Others provide counseling for victims and their families. They can also assist with legal and financial claims, help with recovery of stolen property, or intercede with employers for recovery time and days off.

Since 1995 many new laws have been passed (or are in legislation at present) to help assure justice and assistance for victims. You can consult the resources listed below for information on these various measures. As a Christian, you can be an invaluable resource for someone who has suffered at the hands of a criminal. With planning, preparation, and prayer, you may be the hands of the Lord to someone in need.

You can contact these organizations:

National Victims Center
2111 Wilson Blvd., Suite 300
Arlington, VA 22201
800-FYI-CALL

Justice Fellowship
P.O. Box 16069
Washington, D.C. 20041-6069
(703) 904-7312

For further reading:

Anita Boles, John Patterson. Improving Community Response to Crime Victims: An Eight-Step Model for Developing Protocol. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1997.
Daniel Van Ness. Crime and Its Victims: What We Can Do. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1986.

On the World Wide Web:

National Organization of Victim Assistance: http://www.access.digex.net/~nova/
National Victims Center: http://www.nvc.org/
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics: http://www.albany.edu/sourcebook/

[ Previous | Table of Contents | Next ]

Copyright 1997, Coral Ridge Ministries. All rights reserved.