What’s New
at OVC
Publications and Training Materials OVC Report to the Nation 2007: Rebuilding Lives, Restoring Hope (October 2008) International Terrorism Victim Expense Reimbursement Program Report to Congress (April 2008) (PDF 669 kb) Promising Practices for Serving Crime Victims With Disabilities Bulletin and Toolkit (October 2008) Two new publications underscore the unique challenges in helping people victimized by offenders with a mental illness and their role in mental health courts. Responding to People Who Have Been Victimized by Individuals with Mental Illnesses (PDF 540 kb; September 2008). “Not guilty by reason of insanity” may pose challenges to implementing and enforcing crime victims’ rights. This issue brief reports on these and other barriers, current policies and practices, and the action items that policymakers, advocates, mental health professional and others can take to protect the rights and safety of these crime victims. A companion Guide explores the possible responses to address the adaptations to crime victims’ policies in Mental Health Courts that are contributing factors limiting victims’ rights. See A Guide to the Role of Crime Victims in Mental Health Courts (PDF 635 kb; September 2008). The Council of State Governments Justice Center wrote these two guides with a grant from the Office for Victims of Crime and is making them available off their Consensus Project on Criminal Justice and Mental Health Web site. A special area offers the relevant sections of the Consensus Project Report for victims and victim advocates. Postsecondary Education: Integrating Crime Victims’ Issues Into University and College Curricula—One cooperative agreement of $300,000 will be awarded to enhance university and college curricula by integrating broad victimization issues and responses to crime victims in multidisciplinary education models and faculty development. Apply by December 18, 2008. Web Forum Transcripts Now Available Generate your own transcript of these high-interest topics in the crime victims' field with the click of a button. Find out what questions and answers were shared in previous OVC Web Forum discussions:
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