Lynn Langton

August 4, 2011    NCJ 234212

Presents data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) on trends in the percentage of serious violent crime victims who received help or advice from a victim service agency from 1993 to 2009. This special report examines the relationship between a victim receiving assistance and criminal justice system actions pertaining to the crime, such as reporting the crime to the police, the police making an arrest, or a judge or prosecutor contacting the victim. It also examines the percentage of serious violent crime victims who received assistance by the characteristics of the victim and the victimization, including the victim's age, gender, race, the type of crime, the extent of the victim's injury, and victim-offender relationships.

Highlights:

• About 9% of serious violent crime victims received direct assistance from a victim service agency from 1993 to 2009.
• From 2000 to 2009, 14% of violent crime victims who reported the crime to the police received direct assistance from a victim service agency, compared to 4% when the crime was not reported.
• Victims who received direct assistance from a victim service agency were more likely to see an arrest made in the case and have contact with a non-law enforcement criminal justice official, such as a judge or prosecutor, than victims who did not receive direct assistance.

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