INTEGRATING VICTIMS OF CRIME IN OUR CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Abstract

For a very long time, legal systems in the world over focused on retributive justice, whereby punishment was inflicted on someone as vengeance for a criminal act. Today, the trend is fast changing. Recent laws creating offences and procedural laws are favouring the restorative justice that focuses on the needs of the victim of crime by attempting to heal the harm done by criminal activities as against retributive justice that focuses on theoretical principle of punishment.2 The familiar stereotype of direct victim is the innocent rape or robbery victim, spousal or domestic violence and such other victims of crimes of violence. This class of persons may be referred to as direct or primary victims in this article. There are other persons sometimes more difficult to ascertain who, though not the direct victims but who can reasonably be said and seen to be victimized by criminal conduct such as dependents of a victim of murder or a husband traumatized by the rape of his wife in his presence. These persons may be called secondary or indirect victims. This work examined the need to integrate victims of crime in our criminal justice system and made a call for a paradigm shift. It suggested ways for achieving a more effective protection for victims of crime.