Assignment 1: Job Profile for Victims’ Advocates
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (n.d.), fear is one of the major reasons victims do not report crimes. This may include fear of retaliation or fear of getting the offender into trouble. It is not hard to imagine that some of this fear may be lessened if victims have someone to assist them through the important first steps after crimes have been committed. This is when victims’ advocates become so important. These professionals “offer victims information, emotional support, and help finding resources and filling out paperwork.” In some cases, advocates even go to court with victims (National Center for Victims of Crime, 2012). It truly takes a special person to become a victims’ advocate.

References

 Bureau of Justice Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved May 29, 2018, from https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/press/vnrp0610pr.cfm 

 National Center for Victims of Crime. (2012). Retrieved March 13, 2018, from http://victimsofcrime.org/home

The Assessment:
Consider the type of characteristics you feel are necessary to be a strong and effective victims’ advocate.

Download the Victim Advocate Job Profile Worksheet located in this module’s Learning Resources. Answer the questions on the worksheet.

Then, in approximately 500 words, describe types of services and supports that are available to victim witnesses.

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Book Excerpts
 Daigle, L. E. (2018). Victimology (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing.

Chapter 5, “Victims’ Rights and Remedies” (pp. 59–74)
Victimology, 2nd Edition by Daigle, L.E. Copyright 2018 by Sage College. Reprinted by permission of Sage College via the Copyright Clearance Center.

 Holder, R. L. (2017). Victims, legal consciousness, and legal mobilisation. In A. Deckert & R. Sarre (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of Australian and New Zealand criminology, crime and justice (pp. 649–664). Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave MacMillan.

 

The Palgrave Handbook of Australian and New Zealand Criminology, Crime and Justice, by Deckert, Antje, Sarre, Rick (Eds.). Copyright 2017 by Springer Science & Bus Media B V. Reprinted by permission of Springer Science & Bus Media B V via the Copyright Clearance Center.

Articles
Cassell, P. G., Mitchell, N. J., & Edwards, B. J. (2014). Crime victims’ rights during criminal investigations? Applying the Crime Victims’ Rights Act before criminal charges are filed. Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, 104(1), 59–103.

 

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Neff, J. L., Patterson, M. M., & Johnson, S. (2012). Meeting the training needs of those who meet the needs of victims: Assessing service providers. Violence and Victims, 27(4), 609–631.

 

Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library databases.

Websites
 National Center for Victims of Crime. (2012). Victim impact statements. Retrieved March 13, 2018, from http://victimsofcrime.org/help-for-crime-victims/get-help-bulletins-for-crime-victims/victim-impact-statements

 United States Department of Justice. (n.d.). Crime Victims’ Rights Act. Retrieved March 13, 2018, from https://www.justice.gov/usao/resources/crime-victims-rights-ombudsman/victims-rights-act

 Victim Services Program. (n.d.). CSOSA. Retrieved March 13, 2018, from  https://www.csosa.gov/supervision/victim_services.aspx

 Handout: Victim Advocate Job Profile Worksheet (Word document)

 Handout: Brochure Template (Powerpoint document)

Optional Media
 Office for Victims of Crime. (2016, January 15). Faces of human trafficking: Legal needs and rights of victims [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffrzXouke-E&feature=youtu.be

 Office for Victims of Crime. (2015, January 22). 2015 NCVRW theme video: Engaging communities. Empowering victims. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3i7QAsXKs-s&feature=youtu.be