NCJ Number
174641
Journal
USA Bulletin Volume: 47 Issue: issue Dated: January 1999 Pages: 2-7
Date Published
1999
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the Attorney General Guidelines for Victim and Witness Assistance (Guidelines), and provides an overview of some laws and rules governing victims' rights.
Abstract
The Guidelines were first issued in 1991, updated in 1995, and are currently being revised under the supervision of the Deputy Attorney General's Victims' Rights Working Group. Prosecutors need to be familiar with the Guidelines because they have statutory responsibilities under the victims' rights laws and the Guidelines provide direction and instruction to help them meet those responsibilities. In addition, victims are becoming ever more aware of their rights and are beginning to take legal action when those rights have been infringed upon or denied. The article discusses some of the laws and rules governing victims' rights and several cases involving those principles. In addition, the Executive Office for United States Attorneys recently published a handbook, Victim and Witness Rights: United States Attorneys' Responsibilities, which contains a summary of relevant statutes. Notes