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... However within the last thirty years there has been a growth in the concern of victims. Being a victim of crime is often a traumatic experience and the way in which the police and the criminal justice system respond, throughout the ordeal, has a profound effect on victims. It is felt by many victims that the rights of the defendant are more important than their own. In Britain the central organ of the victim movement is Victim Support, however there also other criminal justice agencies, such as the Women’s Refuge Movement and the Rape Crisis Centres that also are a part of Britain’s victim movement. ... This has lead to it being said that the impact of the entire criminal process is actually unwitting secondary victimisation (Maguire and Pointing 1988: 11). ... It receives some funding from government agencies yet some still remain critical of other government agencies. Regardless of this funding the Women’s Refuge Movement still relies heavily on voluntary support and the women often live in very poor quality accommodation (Dobash and Dobash 1998). ... However since then they have recently received Home office funding and there has been improved access to justice and better treatment of the rape victims.
The volunteer group Victim Support was introduced in order to provide emotional support, information and practical help. It is funded by the Home office and it’s more recent services include the victim support line and the witness service. More recently Victim Support has taken a more proactive role in the promoting of victims rights. Realising that “offenders have clear rights in our system of justice but victims have no enforceable rights under the law” (Victim Support 1995). “Victim Support demanded that victims have the right to be heard and kept informed about the progress of ‘their case’ , to provide information, to be protected by law enforcement agencies, and to receive compensation and ‘respect, recognition and support’ (Victim Support 1995). ... ) The main problem Victim Support has is balancing the need to offer help as widely as it can, to reach those whose need is greatest and ensure that they are met (Maguire and Kynch 2000b: 13).
Approximate Word count = 1704
Approximate Pages = 6.8
(250 words per page double spaced)
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