ANSWER:
Giving victims of crimes the rights that they need in order to rebuild their lives is especially important to me as my children and I learn each day how to survive it and go on from the atrocities we have endured at the hands of my ex-husband. I feel that the more I learn here in school and the wealth of information I have obtained just by experience has been tremendous, but that system of justice is nothing but a crock. Justice and the proverbial "equal justice under the law" would in fact balance the scales of rights between offenders and victims. I am not sure that this is actually attainable, but we should strive or at least attempt to meet this goal. As the system is in its current condition, there is little, if any hope for this to occur.
An amendment to the United States Constitution guaranteeing protection and the rights of crime victims is essential. Our system of justice is so involved in the ensuring the rights of the accused proceed according to the of the Due Process Clause found within the 5th, 6th, and 14th Amendments of the Constitution, yet nothing is found to protect or afford rights to the victims who have suffered unimaginable damage at the hands of these offenders.
Thirty – two states and the federal government have enacted legal protections for victims of crime; however, it is insignificant comfort to those who have endured crimes against them. (Bush) Our criminal justice system is by design, an adversarial system and few victims are prepared for the brutality that they will endure at its relentless mercy. Anyone in their right mind that has a complete understanding of this process would never proceed with a case if they are looking for compassion or solace for the victim. It simply isn’t there; quite to the contrary in fact. Not only does the Constitution provide numerous rights to the defendant of a crime, they have the right to be informed (reminded) of these rights through the Miranda. Victims have no right of knowing what rights they actually posses and perhaps the crux of the problem is the steadfast, undeniable fact that they do not have any!
Statistics shows millions of crimes are committed each year. Where there are crimes there are victims. The data of criminals and the crimes they represent is endless and to a degree of certainty accurately recorded. However, the numbers of victims is far less believable. Many victims do not even report crime. Why does this happen? Many of them know that nothing good will come of it for them. Take for instance the figures on sexual assault and rape. Records indicate that 1 in 3 women are raped; however only 1 in 10 actually reports it.
Another reason to incorporate an amendment to the constitution for victims’ rights is the mere fact that victims by trend are becoming younger each year. Most of them are in their teens or early adulthood. (BJS, 2006) All victims of all ages must be guaranteed by the United States Constitution of certain rights and liberties. Children are especially vulnerable as they don’t always have a voice to be heard when it comes to the criminal process of a crime. Not only has the age of the victim decreased over the past several decades, the velocity to which these crimes have escalated is bewildering. The focus has shifted from punishment for the crime to rehabilitation. Offenders are for the most part, not interested in rehabilitation; and anyone that is familiar with the term in any sense knows that in order for true rehabilitation to occur, the individual has to want it more than they want anything else at that distinct moment. No one can force or coerce someone into wanting to change. The desire for change must come from within or the success of the project will undoubtedly be failure.
There are numerous advocate groups working to help victims of crimes. The work that they do is incredible, but the need is too great. There are not enough resources, people or funding to help every victim. To help ease some of this burden an amendment must be created and implemented. The wording to this amendment must be precise and prepared with careful intent.
References:
Bush, Pres George (April 16, 2002) The White House: President Calls for Crime
Victim’s Rights Amendment. Last visited November 27, 2007 at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/04/20020416-1.html
BJS (September 10, 2006) Bureau of Justice Statistics: Trends in victimization rates by age, 1973-2005. Last visited November 27, 2007 at: http://crime.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=crime&cdn=newsissues&tm=71&f=00&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/cvict_v.htm
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