ch2.pdf

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Prepared by Emily Berthelot, University of Arkansas at Little Rock ©

2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved.

CHAPTER TWO

THE REDISCOVERY
OF CRIME VICTIMS

1. To trace how changes in the criminal justice

system over the centuries have impacted the

role of victims in the legal process.

2. To find out how and why the plight of victims

has been rediscovered in recent decades by

various social movements and groups.

Learning Objectives

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3. To become familiar with the stages of the

rediscovery process.

4. To apply the concept of rediscovery to specific

groups of victims mentioned in the news.

Learning Objectives

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History of Victims

 Historically, criminal justice focused on victims to
seek redress for pain and suffering based upon
biblical tenets and English Common

 Industrialization and urbanization began to
diminish the role of victims

 Victims lost control of government and judicial
process

 Recovery of damages ultimately became a civil
rather than a criminal matter

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History of Victims

 History in United States similar

 In Colonial America, victims conducted
investigations and paid for warrants for
sheriff to make arrests

 “Bill of Rights” reconceptualized crimes as
hostilities against the “state”

 Focused on protecting rights of criminals

 Violation of laws more important than harm
to victims

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History of Victims

 Focus of prosecutors and courts was to deter crime

through punishment, long sentences, and execution

 Prosecutors were given the powers and duties that

were previously the responsibility of victims

 Victims’ roles:

 Filing a complaint with the police

 Testifying for the prosecution, if necessary

 Not notified or involved with plea bargaining of

their cases in court

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Late 50s and early 60s social movements

influenced the rediscovery of victims:

 and Order Movement

 Civil Rights Movement

 Women’s Rights Movement

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Rediscovery of Victims

 and Order Groups

 Reaction to rising crime rates

 “Get tough on criminals” focused on victims

 Lock up criminals quickly and for a longer
time

 Fewer loopholes for attorneys

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Women’s Movement—Became very active in
antirape and antibattering campaigns
 Efforts to break down patriarchal culture

tradition to subjugate women

 1972—First antirape effort with crisis centers in
Berkeley, CA and Washington D.C.

 1974—First “Safe House” for battered women
established in St. Paul, Minnesota

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Other Social Movements

 Rights of Children

 Senior Citizens—Elder Abuse

 Homosexuals

 Better training for law enforcement

 Prisoners’ rights movement

 Self help movement

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Politicians enacting legislation named after
victims became very popular:
 Brady Bill, Amber Alert, and Megan’s

 Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security
Policy and Campus Crime Act

 Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act

 Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate
Crimes Prevention Act

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Rediscovery of Victims

 The news media played a major role in

the rediscovery of victims.

 More attention given to victims rather than

offenders in media coverage

 Highly publicized cases gave victims a forum

to be heard

 24-hour news cycle delivers reports of

crimes and victims around the clock

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Media’s rights to report crimes often conflicts
with the victim’s rights for privacy.

 Solutions to this problem include:

 “Shield laws” to protect from needless and
unnecessary disclosure of names and addresses
and previous victim involvement

 Self-restraint of reporters and editors

 Adoption of a “Code of Ethics” requiring reporters
to read a victim their “victim rights” prior to any
interviews

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Commercialization of products and
services for victims

 es cash in on customers’ fear of
becoming a victim

 Automobile anti-theft devices (Do they really
work?)

 Home security systems

 Pepper spray

 Firearms

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Victimologists played a major role

 Process of rediscovery unfolds through a
series of steps and stages:

 Stage 1— Calling Attention to an
Overlooked Problem

 Stage 2— Winning Victories,
Implementing Reforms

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Rediscovery of Victims

 Stage 3—Emergence of an Opposition and
Development of Resistance to Further Changes

 Stage 4—Research and Temporary Resolution
of Disputes

 The process of rediscovery continues:

See Box 2.2

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Rediscovery of Victims

The Four Stages of Rediscovery Illustrated:

Human Trafficking

1. Reviving public outrage about a longstanding

problem

 American feminists and conservative, evangelical

Christians joined together to heighten concern and

provoke outrage with regards to human trafficking

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Rediscovery of Victims

2. Passing Legislation and Setting Up Assistance

Programs

 U.S. Department of State broadened definition of

trafficking

 All 50 states and the District of Columbia have passed

legislation to combat sex and labor trafficking

 Most states still lack adequate laws to support and

assist persons who have escaped

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Rediscovery of Victims

3. Challenges Arise and Opposition Emerges

 Some activists feel the casual application of the

term “modern-day slavery” is insensitive and

historically inaccurate

 Concern about media sensationalism

 Suspicions that the problem is being exaggerated

by campaigners

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Rediscovery of Victims

4. Research Findings Temporarily Resolve

Disputes

 Over 525 confirmed victims located (Banks and

Kyckkelhahn, 2011)

 Studies have found that police departments lack

sufficient policies and adequate training to accurately

identify trafficking victims and successfully investigate

their cases (Wilson, Walsh, and Kleuber, 2006;

Farrell, McDevitt, and Fahey, 2010; and George,

2012)

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