N AT I O N A L C R I M E V I C T I M L AW I N ST I T U T E P R OT E C T I N G , E N F O R C I N G & A DVA N C I N G V I C T I M S ’ R I G H T S
December 2012
Every day family, friends, and neighbors are victimized. In fact, in this country a violent crime occurs every 26.2 seconds and a property crime every 3.5 seconds. What does this look like? 1 person is murdered every 36 minutes; 1 person is raped every 6.3 minutes; 3.3 million people are victims of stalking each year; and 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year. What does this mean? In the midst of their trauma, many of these victims and their families are thrust into the criminal justice system. A system that can be foreign and frightening. In the words of Judith Herman, M.D., “if one set out intentionally to design a system for provoking symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, it might look very much like a court of law.” But it doesn’t have to be this way. When victims are afforded the rights promised to them by law amazing things can happen. A court that hears from the victim can better achieve justice; a defendant compelled to face the harm that (s)he caused may gain insight; and a victim who is empowered can take steps toward surviving. As the only national organization focused on victims’ legal rights, NCVLI is fighting to ensure victims are empowered and justice is enhanced. We: • P rov i d e g u i d a n ce o n h ow to i m p rove v i c t i m s ’ r i g h t s • Ed u c a te co u r t s o n h ow to a p p l y t h e l aw • E n s u re t h a t v i c t i m s h ave we l l - t ra i n e d a t to r n eys a n d a d vo c a te s w h o h ave a cce s s to o u r ex p e r t l e g a l s u p p o r t
Let me tell you about just one of our cases:
JANE DOE, A YOUNG GIRL IN CALIFORNIA, was an ordinary high school student. Then she
was raped by two perpetrators, both of whom she knew. Overcoming the odds, Jane reported the crime. During the prosecution of one of the perpetrators, Jane and her parents received a subpoena for Jane’s rape crisis center records and her Facebook records spanning a 17-month period. Imagine – a teenage girl having everything about her private life known by her perpetrator and paraded before strangers. The basis for the subpoena added insult to injury – it boiled down to the idea that Jane may have said some things on Facebook that are not what a “real rape victim “ would say, and that because she didn’t disclose the rape on Facebook the rape must not have happened. The prosecutor fought for Jane, but it wasn’t enough – she needed a lawyer by her side whose only agenda was to protect her rights. NCVLI secured a pro bono attorney who, with research, support, and strategic advice from NCVLI, is fighting for Janes’s privacy and dignity.
THE IM PAC T O F YO UR GI F T $50 ensures that staff can respond to a victim’s call $200 supports emergency legal research to make a difference in a victim’s case
MAKE A GIFT ONLINE TODAY www.NCVLI.org
$500 distributes the latest law to advocates and attorneys $1,000 provides online training for attorneys and advocates $2,500 provides a week’s worth of legal expertise for victims $5,000 provides cutting-edge victims’ rights legal publications to the country $10,000 supports NCVLI standing beside a victim as amicus curiae in appellate courts ANY AMOUNT ensures victims have access to caring and committed professionals
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