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Justice for Victims. Justice for All.
Office for Victims of Crime

Library & Multimedia

New Directions from the Field: Victims’ Rights and Services for the 21st Century Video Preview Transcript

[Opening image showing title]

[Images of police cars and crime victims consoling one another.]

Female voiceover: Prior to the Seventies, and in many communities now, there’s not been somebody who is specifically there for the needs of the victims.

Dr. Dean Kilpatrick, Professor of Psychology, National Crime Victim Research and Treatment Center: There has really been, since 1982, an explosion of legislation of new programs, of new policies, all of which have improved dramatically the way that victims are treated by the criminal justice system.

[Images of police officers, social workers, helping people.]

Janice Harris Lord, Former National Director of Victim Services, MADD: It’s time now to move that wonderful knowledge that has been accumulated out in the field to come up with very precise and exciting and clear directions for what we now want to call a field, rather than a movement.

[Images of court, people shaking hands and hugging.]

Kathryn Turman, Former Director of the Office for Victims of Crime: That’s exactly what New Directions is-a landmark document that chronicles not only how far the victims' field has come since 1982, but where we should be going.

David Beatty, Director of Public Policy, National Center for Victims of Crime: What we found is that in many cases fewer than half of those crime victims were actually being given their rights. And so, if you’re talking about rights that are only being observed about half the time, it is hard to say that those are real rights.

Kathryn Turman: The New Directions book offers examples of people and programs working to ensure that all justice and allied professionals receive the training necessary to do their jobs better and meet the needs of victims of crime.

[OVC closing image]

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