THE RIGHTS OF VICTMS OF CRIME

“Victims of crime” are recognised to have a set of rights which they can exercise in order to meet their needs and defend their interests and expectations.

These rights are set out not just in national laws but also in international legal instruments, such as the European Union Directive establishing minimum standards on the rights, support, and protection of victims of crime.
To read this Directive, click here.

Here you can get to know these rights better and learn how they can be put into practice.
If any of these rights are not respected, the victim should report this to the authority responsible for ensuring compliance with the infringed right.

Victim Support Services can help you exercise some of these rights by providing information and explanations and guiding you through any procedures with the authorities.

RIGHT TO SECURITY: PERSONAL PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES

The protection and safety of victims can be safeguarded by applying precautionary measures to the suspect or accused person. The precautionary measure is a restriction on the freedom of the suspected or accused person, which can be applied during the criminal proceedings if there is a danger of escape, the danger of tampering with the evidence of the crime, or the danger of repeating the crime. There are several precautionary measures such as: the prohibition of expatriation for the suspect or accused person; the suspension of the suspect or accused person from exercising certain professions; the obligation imposed on the suspect or accused person to report periodically to the police; the removal imposed on the suspect or accused person from the family home, or from places frequented by the victim; the prohibition imposed on the suspect or accused person to approach the places frequented by the victim; the prohibition or obligation imposed on the suspect or accused person to reside in a specific territory; the arrest of the suspected or accused person at his home; the arrest of the suspected or accused person in prison or in a health resort. In the event of stalking, domestic violence and bullying, the victim can ask and obtain a warning against the perpetrator from the local questore. The victim must be informed in case of revocation or replacement of the precautionary measures for the filing of a memory and should be heard, when the Judge deems it necessary.

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RIGHTS OF VICTIMS WITH SPECIFIC PROTECTION NEEDS

Victims with specific protection needs are those who, based on their personal characteristics, the type or nature of the crime suffered and/or the circumstances in which the crime occurred, are particularly vulnerable due to the repetitive victimisation, secondary victimisation, intimidation or retaliation. They require special treatments, especially in regards to protection measures. This vulnerability should be evaluated case by case, however the victims that need great care are those who have suffered considerable damage after the crime, victims of offences caused by discrimination on the basis of their personal traits or those victims whose relation and sense of dependence from their aggressor rendered them weak and defenceless. So special attention should be paid to victims of terrorism, organised crime, human trafficking, gender-based violence, domestic violence, sexual violence and hate crimes. Regardless of the type of crime suffered, children, the elderly and persons suffering from diseases or disabilities should be given special consideration when assessing specific protection needs. Where a particularly vulnerable victim has to be involved in a procedural act, the Public Prosecutor or the judge must ensure that, irrespective of the application of other measures, such act is carried out under the best possible conditions, in order to ensure the spontaneity and sincerity of the answers: - the testimony phase of the particularly vulnerable victim should take place as soon as possible; - This request must be made by a qualified professional figure and, when the victim has to be heard more than once, the questions must always be asked by the same professional; - The questioning of a victim of sexual violence, gender violence or domestic violence, when not executed by a judge or a prosecutor, should be done by a person of the same sex of the victim if they wish to do so; - Procedural acts should be organised in such a way that the particularly vulnerable witness never encounters certain persons involved in the same trial, especially the accused; - It is necessary to avoid visual contact between the victim and the accused, that person should be heard using concealment or teleconferencing and his presence in the courtroom is not required in this case; - The victim will be questioned by the judge, after that, the Public Prosecutor, the plaintiff’s attorney, the defendant’s attorney and the defendant’s attorney may ask for further questions, which will be made by the judge and not directly by them; - the victim should not be asked questions about their private life that are not related to the crime suffered; - In some cases, procedural proceedings, including the judgement phase, may be conducted without the presence of the public.

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I WAS A VICTIM OF CRIME: CONSEQUENCES AND REACTIONS THE RIGHTS OF VICTMS OF CRIME CRIMINAL COURT PROCEEDINGS WHO’S WHO IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS


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