The core duty of the judicial system is always to deliver justice within the jurisdiction of the constitution and other existing laws of the land. By this, the judicial system has the mandate to ensure that those who break the law receive rightful punishment and the offended receive justice. The key needs of the victims, the offended,; anytime a crime has taken place is fair treatment and justice. The United States of America being a member state is the United Nations, there are various formulations made by the organization which is also effective in the country. Then United Nations Declaration of 1985 of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power classifies fair judgement and justice as the need for victims. The declaration provides basic formulations and privileges granted to a victim. Firstly, the declaration states that victims should always be treated with compassion and their dignity respected. This way, the victims are entitled to access all the possible justice mechanisms guided by the legislation of the country to address the harm that they have suffered. In the United States of America, the seeking of justice is always left for the states. The states have the mandate to ensure the victims get justice for the damages caused to them.
Victims in any crime are always in need of support and assistance. The reason why they need this support is for their recovery purposes. Many times, the victims of crimes are always left with the side effects of the activity, which when not given a timely response the results may be disastrous. Crime victims may need emotional and psychological assistance. Crimes such as murder interfere with the mental balance of the victims, which they may need support to overcome. One of the common mental imbalances after the crime that affects many victims is Post traumatic Stress Disorder. This condition might occur in victims in cases where they did not undergo depression treatment after the occurrence of the crime. Also, the victims might need support in terms of legal and financial assistance. At times, the victims might have the required capital and finances to seek justice. This evident where the victims are not in a position to raise the required amount of capital to hire a lawyer. Many times, this assistance is always offered by the state by giving the victims a state law to help them seek justice. Lastly, those victims whom the crime interfered with economically are always in need of financial support. For example, those whose businesses that were disrupted by crime are always in need of financial support so that they can make their business run again. There is a range of actors that can and should provide support, including in particular, actors within the criminal justice system, victim assistance services but also professionals from the health and education system and faith-based organizations.
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Thirdly, victims are always in constant need of protection. The 1985 declaration by the United Nations calls for governments of different countries to implement measures and policies which are aimed at minimizing the inconvenience of victims in the judicial system. The declaration also calls for policies that will ensure that they privacy of the victims is protected and where applicable or necessary, the state should ensure their safety and that of their family members is protected. The victim’s experiences should always be treated with confidentiality.
In the Criminal Justice system, the judge can give a temporal judgment to a juvenile who has been found with an offense. Sometimes the court can give the juvenile a period of confinement before given probation or other lenient options. Although a juvenile can have a confinement period, they are not the same as those adult criminals who are being sentenced. The confinement can involve house arrest, or the judge can order the juvenile to spend some time in a detention center before given a probation period. In some severe offenses, the minor can be made to spend more time in an adult prison. Some judges are of the opinion that the penalties the juveniles can receive are to be taken through the rehabilitation process rather than being confined. Considering all these, there are collective and individual needs of all participants in the criminal justice system, like victims, offenders, and the community they need to be well known when seeking justice. However, the implementation of restorative and other approaches to justice in a culturally sensitive way needs to be considered. Furthermore, the value of Christian belief and practice for Criminal Justice needs to be discerned through the ethical consequences of decisions from the biblical perspective.
The individual and collective needs of all participants in the Criminal Justice System including the victims, offenders, and the community, are fundamental. The needs of these people can change over time. Some conditions exist immediately after the crime has been done, and others come long after the crime has been committed. The needs range from the rights like a right to respect and recognition and the right to protection. Other requirements include access to justice and fair treatment during the judgement, given assistance and support where necessary, and redressing the adverse effects of the offense in the form of restitution and compensation. The United Nations Declaration stated “that every participant in criminal justice should be treated with compassion and respect for their dignity” (Karstedt 2002, 299). The first essential of any participant is to be recognized. Human dignity is a fundamental right. Treating those who have committed an offense with compassion and respect is very important when ensuring that all the participants will have justice. It is essential that all participants are recognized and that their consequences out of their offenses are acknowledged.
The victims, offenders, and the community should be treated with dignity and respect in the process of handling any case either by the police or the criminal investigations department, legal professionals, judicial staff, or any other person who is involved in Criminal Justice. The procedures and the communications should be done in a sensitive way. Those interacting with the victims should do it with empathy and understanding of the individual of the group. A similar case should be done in which the victim should have the support and any other social service required. An excellent example of a disrespectful act is setting a trial date and time without consulting the offender whether it will be possible for her/him to attend. In addition, denying the victim privacy when doing an examination. Lastly, doing interrogation in the community in an inappropriate and blaming way. Respect is paramount, especially to vulnerable groups like children, sexual and gender-based violence victims, domestic violence victims, aged people, and people with disabilities.
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