Recognition and Implementation of Victims' Rights in the United States: Developments and Achievements (From The Victimology Handbook: Research Findings, Treatment, and Public Policy, P 319-336, 1990, Emilio Viano, ed. -- See NCJ-126951)

• NCJ Number: 126972
• Author(s): E C Viano
• Date Published: 1990
• Length: 18 pages
• Sale Source: Garland Publishing, Inc.
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This paper examines the development of the victims' rights movement in the United States within the framework of the history of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, with reference also to the recently adopted United Nations Resolution 40/34 which contains the Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power.

Abstract

A review of the struggles, successes, and setbacks of the crime victims' movement highlights the passage and implementation of Federal legislation on victim compensation and recent developments in restitution, mediation, and reconciliation. The pitfalls of the victims' rights emphasis on individual rights, a powerful cultural and political force in the United States, are discussed. One of the pitfalls is a proliferation of groups advocating the rights of perceived victims of particular crimes and injustices. These victim advocacy groups often array themselves against one another, such as abortion and antiabortion groups and antipornograpy and anticensorship groups. These conflicts are likely to intensify under the U.S. Supreme Court's "Webster" decision, which apparently undermines the legal construct of implied "fundamental rights," leaving rights to be determined by State legislators and the advocacy groups that influence them. 14-item bibliography