First Posted: 3/30/2015
April is the Victims of Crime Month.
Who among us is not aware the impact of crime has had on all of us?
Open up your paper, listen to your radio and watch your television as they relate the horrible crimes against women and children and senior citizens. Children in day care centers abused by the adults they trust, the innocent bystander injured from the violence of an escalated argument, victims of drunken drivers, so many elderly lose their life savings to smooth telephone operators who promise them greater financial security.
Newspapers tell us the crime rate is falling, this doesn’t mean a thing to the small children left at home to fend for themselves, or the young man or woman savagely beaten and left permanently disabled. The elderly who have been burglarized in their own home many times by their own family.
Can they truly feel safe again?
One of my concerns is the crime against the elderly by the relatives who victimize them, financially and many other ways. Court-appointed guardians who don’t pay their bills, use their credit cards to pay their own bills and purchase non-essential items for themselves leaving the elderly financially in need.
We learn so much when we listen to the voice of the victim. For a long time they have been quiet.
Is it because we have not been willing to listen?
The victimized senior citizen tells us, “My family doesn’t want me to say anything, they are sorry, they will pay me back.” This doesn’t happen.
The victim of domestic violence tells us, “He promised me it will not happen again, but the abuse and threats are getting more frequent and he is starting to abuse the kids. I have to do something!”
Who gave him permission to abuse his wife, to raise his fist and threaten his family?
We do ask her, “Why do you stay?” When the question should be, “Why does he abuse you?”
Who gave the pedophiles permission to sexually molest our children?
These victims are real human beings, real individuals who suffer; they are the only people who can personalize the crime. For every crime there is a victim whose voice needs to be heard. Offenders need to hear the voices of the victims, they need to understand the harm they have caused the victims, the communities, and their own families and themselves.
The judge in the felony case needs to know how the victim has been affected by the crime. How their lifestyle has changed and what they think the sentence should be. In addition the court wants to know about the cost to the victim and whether they will be affected in the future by the crime. This information is included in the victim’s impact statement prepared by the victim and presented to adult probation for the judge to read before sentencing.
In Van Wert County we welcome the concept of victims justice. Justice for victims simply means they are given a voice and a process that will affect them the rest of their lives, it also means that victims have input into decisions that affect how their offenders will be treated and held accountable for their offences. Victims have a voice and creating a vision of “justice for all,” which equates to justice for victims, offenses and communities and for the nation as a whole.
Are you or someone you know a victim of crime? Are you tired of being told to get over it? Not sure of your options? Don’t know which way to turn?
There is help. If you are a victim of crime there are more than 32,000 laws and 10,000 victims assistants who are willing to serve you. Together we fulfill the promise to treat you with compassion and dignity. We are here to help you meet your physical, emotional and financial needs and assist you and understanding and demanding your legal rights. Let us put this promise to work for you.
It is your right.
