National Organization for Victim Assistance - Message from The Director
During the past two decades, the victim assistance field has made tremendous progress in
securing fundamental justice and comprehensive services for all crime victims. However,
many crime victims remain unidentified and unserved. To ensure these "invisible victims"
are reached, the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) provided funding to the National
Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA) for the project Working with Crime Victims with
Disabilities. As part of this project, NOVA coordinated a symposium that brought together
experts in the disability advocacy, victim assistance, and research fields to address the
issues of justice and access to services for crime victims with disabilities. This
symposium was one of the first national scope initiatives that focused exclusively on
individuals with disabilities within the criminal justice system, not as offenders, but as
victims.
The findings of the symposium communicated in this OVC Bulletin illustrate that many crime
victims with disabilities have never participated in the criminal justice process, even
those who have been repeatedly and brutally victimized. The highlighted recommendations
will assist advocates in their efforts to ensure that crime victims with disabilities have
full access to the criminal justice system and receive their entitled services. Lastly, a
few of the existing programs that are working actively to serve crime victims with
disabilities are described.
We know that the issues involved in assisting victims with disabilities present tremendous
challenges. But we have full confidence that the victim assistance and disability advocacy
communities will embrace these challenges like they have so many others. Working with Crime
Victims with Disabilities represents a small but significant step toward ensuring justice
and access to services for all crime victims.
Kathryn M. Turman
Acting Director
Working with Victims of Crime with Disabilities
by Cheryl Guidry Tyiska, Director of Victim Services
National Organization for Victim Assistance
Introduction
This Bulletin is a product of the Symposium on Working with Crime Victims with
Disabilities,
funded by the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) and coordinated by the
National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA), on January 23-24, 1998, in Arlington,
Virginia. The Symposium brought together experts from the disability advocacy and victim
assistance and research fields, and they raised as many questions as they answered, thus
opening the way for the victim assistance field to look more closely at a large and
under-served crime victim population. As a result of their discussions, they developed
recommendations for OVC and the victim assistance field on improving the response in
serving crime victims with disabilities, which are included in this Bulletin.
Historically, all victims of crime have been denied full participation in the criminal
justice process. Crime victims with disabilities and their families are even less likely to
reap the benefits of the criminal justice system. Disability advocates report that crimes
against people with disabilities are often not reported to police. Of those that lead to an
investigation and an arrest, very few are prosecuted. When going through the criminal
justice process, few victims with disabilities come into contact with a crime victim
advocate. Often when victim services are provided, they may be inappropriate due to
inadequate training of victim service providers.
As with most types of crime and crime victims, underreporting of crimes perpetrated against
people with disabilities is a major problem. Currently there is no authoritative research
that details how many individuals with a disability become crime victims or how many people
become disabled by criminal attacks. Nor has the victim assistance field adequately
identified the best practices for serving victims with unique needs or how to train
criminal justice system personnel - including victim specialists - to make services truly
accessible to all crime victims.
Limited information exists regarding the criminal victimization of people with
disabilities, but the little that is available is horrifying in nature and scope. Joan
Petersilia, Researcher and Professor of Criminology at the University of California,
Irvine, stated that persons with developmental disabilities have a 4 to 10 times higher
risk of becoming crime victims than persons without a disability, in her Report to the
California Senate Public Safety Committee hearings on " Persons with Developmental
Disabilities in the Criminal Justice System."In addition, she says, " Children with any
kind of disability are more than twice as likely as nondisabled children to be physically
abused and almost twice as likely to be sexually abused." Others in the crime victims field
recount anecdotal experiences from their work that illustrate that crimes against people
with disabilities are often extremely violent and calculatedly intended to injure, control,
and humiliate the victim.
"Children with any kind of disability are more than twice as
likely as nondisabled children to be physically abused and almost twice as likely to be
sexually abused."
Reginald Robinson, former Acting Director of the Office for Victims of Crime, asked the
Symposium participants " How can we better identify and serve all crime victims who need
advocacy and services? Are we rising to the challenge of being inclusive as we define the
populations that deserve our attention and support?" This Bulletin highlights the main
discussion points and recommendations developed by the Symposium participants and seeks
to encourage victim assistance program staff to take the necessary steps to better serve
crime victims with disabilities in their communities.
Obstacles Unique to the Disability Community
Some of the numerous social and legal problems faced by people with disabilities can be
summarized as follows:
Isolation
Our society often segregates persons with disabilities through physical and social
isolation, with institutionalization representing the extreme. As a result of pervasive
isolation, people with disabilities may not learn about available services and resources
nor are they routinely informed of rights they have by law. This is particularly true for
people with more severe disabling conditions, older people with disabilities, and younger
people with developmental disabilities. Indeed, many people who are chronically
victimized do not even know that society condemns such predatory conduct and has tools to
end and redress that wrong.
Limited Access
Physical Accessibility: In many instances, crime victims with disabilities do not have
physical access to services. Architectural barriers in buildings and public
transportation systems mean that many crime victims with disabilities cannot visit
criminal justice agencies or victim assistance programs. The Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (ADA) addresses key issues of accessibility, but as Symposium participants
pointed out, there is an extensive lack of understanding of how Titles II and III of the
ADA pertain to the criminal justice and victim assistance fields. Moreover, this lack of
understanding is frequently coupled with a fear that making services accessible to crime
victims with disabilities will require expensive, disruptive adaptations.
Attitudinal Accessibility: Attitudes toward the person with a disability is as important
or more so than physical accessibility. In addition to accessible physical environments,
program staff must be welcoming toward people with disabilities and show in their
demeanor and in the quality of their programs that they sincerely want to work
collaboratively to serve the community.
In California, a woman was stabbed in the back during a robbery attempt. As a result
of the assault, she became paraplegic. Unfortunately, neither the police nor hospital
staff told her about victim assistance or independent living services. Because the
assailant was never apprehended, the prosecutor-based victim assistance program did not
provide her with services. In her anger and depression, she became suicidal. She survived
a suicide attempt only because an alert nurse resuscitated her in time.
Underreporting of the Crime
Underreporting of crime is a pervasive problem that the victim assistance field is
addressing on many fronts. For example, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network
(RAINN)1 estimates that 1,000 rapes occur every day in the U.S., but only about 300 will
ever be reported to the police. A crime may go unreported for many reasons: mobility or
communication barriers, the social or physical isolation of the victim, a victim's normal
feelings of shame and self-blame, ignorance of the justice system, or the perpetrator is
a family member or primary caregiver. In crimes involving a victim with a disability, one
or more of these factors may prevent the crime from ever being reported. When the crime
is reported, the reporting agency often fails to note that the victim had a disability,
especially if the crime is reported by someone other than the victim. Later, assumptions
and prejudice about the reliability of the testimony of victims with disabilities can
deny them access to justice in the courts.
Limited Advocacy
Despite progress by disability rights activists, advocacy on their own behalf is still
limited. Again, just as with many crime victims, a person who wants to access criminal
justice decisionmaking processes is unable to do so without adequate tools to enable full
participation.
Myths
The following three myths contribute to stereotyping which often results in
discrimination against people with disabilities:
The first myth is the perception that people with disabilities are " suffering."
Rather than extending legal rights and protections, as with other oppressed groups, a
societal response prior to passage of the ADA typically was to extend " charity." Being
kind to a person with a disability is not an acceptable substitute for the provision of
civil rights protections.
The second myth is that people with disabilities lack the ability to
make choices or determine for themselves what is best for them in all spheres of life
(physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, political, sexual, and financial). Although
individuals with severe cognitive impairments may need greater support and advocacy
services, this does not impede their ability or preclude their right to participate
actively in decisions affecting their lives.
The third myth, according to crime victim advocates, is that many people
in society fear contact with crime victims generally, as though their distresses are
contagious. An even stronger stigma attaches to people with disabilities. Our society is
not socialized to integrate differences in abilities as a part of our perception of
" normality." The cultural norms for functioning include good hearing and vision, physical
independence and mobility, mental alertness, the ability to communicate primarily through
the written and spoken word, and physical attractiveness. Deviations from those norms
tend to frighten those in the " able-bodied majority" who define the concept of normal
abilities. When the two forces of stigma are joined, victimization and disability
attitudinal barriers to providing healing and justice can seem even more formidable.
Until recently, the crime victims' movement has not worked systematically to identify
issues and challenges involved in responding more effectively to victims with
disabilities. Improving service delivery to people with disabilities must become a
priority because the crime victims' rights movement is founded on the premise that every
crime victim deserves fundamental justice and comprehensive, quality services.
Background
Since the early days of the victims' rights movement, the effort has been animated by a
two-fold desire to address the trauma of victimization and to move crime victims from
outside of the criminal justice system, looking in, to the center of the process.
Fostering full participation of crime victims has been at the heart of what the victims'
rights movement has sought to achieve. Victim advocates, in particular, provide the tools
that allow crime victims to reconstruct their lives and regain the control that was taken
from them by the criminal. This healing process enables victims to perceive themselves as
survivors and in most instances, to seek and achieve full engagement with society once
again.
Inclusion and participation have been at the heart of a parallel civil rights movement.
The disability rights movement has worked diligently to ensure that people with
disabilities are able to contribute their considerable talents to society.
A primary difference for a person with a disability who becomes a crime victim, however,
is that the criminal victimization frequently compounds existing problems caused by a
lack of accessibility to basic social services, poverty, institutionalization, and other
barriers to equal rights. A crime that would be damaging to an able-bodied person is
frequently a devastating blow to a person with a disability. Indeed, for many, it is the
criminal assault itself that results in a disability, when major life functions; the
ability to move, to communicate, to understand, are disrupted temporarily or
permanently.
Many people with disabling conditions are especially vulnerable to victimization because
of their real or perceived inability to fight or flee, or to notify others and testify
about the victimization. Frequently, because a person with a disability may be more
physically frail, the victimization may exacerbate existing health or mental health
problems. For those who hope that their disability may " protect" them from criminal
victimization, it is shocking to learn that many criminals do not act upon a perceived
" desirability" of the intended victim. Indeed, many perpetrators may be unaware that
their victims have a disability. Here, the victim is truly random another one of us in
the wrong place at the wrong time; although that victim's ability to frustrate the
criminal's intent may be less than a person's without a disability.
Another reality is that many offenders are motivated by a desire to obtain control over
the victim and measure their potential prey for vulnerabilities. Many people with
disabilities, because they are perceived as unable to physically defend themselves, or
identify the attacker, or call for help, are perfect targets for such offenders. People
with disabilities are also vulnerable to abuse by the very professionals and other
caregivers who provide them with services. Just as many pedophiles gravitate to
youth-serving occupations, so do many other predators seek work as caregivers to people
with disabilities. Indeed, in one survey, virtually half 48.1 percent of the perpetrators
of sexual abuse against people with disabilities had gained access to their victims
through disability services.
People who are victimized are vulnerable to exacerbated suffering. Most victims will
experience a sense of shock, disbelief, or denial that the crime occurred, often followed
by cataclysmic emotions: fear, anger, confusion, guilt, humiliation and grief, among
others. But people with disabilities may have intensified reactions because they may
already feel stigmatized and often have low self-esteem due to societal attitudes. The
sense of self-blame, confusion, vulnerability, and loss of trust may be exaggerated, as
may be an ambivalence or negativity related to their perception of their bodies. Denial
and avoidance of the need to cope with the aftermath may complicate the identification of
crime victims with a disability. Some victims, particularly elderly and those with
developmental disabilities, will need services designed to enhance a feeling of safety
and security regarding future victimization.
Unlike most in this series of OVC Bulletins focusing on special categories of victims,
this one offers no authoritative " census" describing the numbers and characteristics of
the victim population under review. The implementation of such a census is very high on
the agenda of those working in both the victim rights and disability rights arenas so
that, at last, the nation will have reliable data on who among the population with
disabilities is hurt by crime, in what way, and how frequently. Despite the absence of an
authoritative census, there are a number of studies that indicate that the risk of
criminal victimization is much higher for an individual with a disability than for
someone without a physical or cognitive disability.
The following are statistics revealed by some studies. For example, research has found
that 68 percent to 83 percent of women with developmental disabilities will be sexually
assaulted in their lifetime, which represents a 50 percent higher rate than the rest of
the population. People with developmental disabilities are more likely to be
re-victimized by the same person and more than half never seek assistance from legal or
treatment services (Pease and Frantz, 1994). It is not just individuals with developmental
disabilities who suffer very high rates of victimization. A study of psychiatric
inpatients found that 81 per-cent had been physically or sexually assaulted.4 The
Colorado Department of Health estimates that upward of 85 percent of women with
disabilities are victims of domestic abuse, in comparison with, on average, 25 to 50
percent of the general population.5
About 54 million Americans live with a wide array of physical, cognitive, and emotional
disabilities. Some disabilities will be more easily discernable than others. People who
use wheelchairs, service animals, or walkers are easy to identify. Less obvious will be
those with intellectual or mental disabilities (such as people who have learning
disabilities or schizophrenia) and those with chronic illnesses (such as people with
chronic fatigue syndrome, seizure disorders, arthritis, alcoholism and drug addiction,
and HIV disease). As with any crime victim, people with disabilities may be victims of
domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, homicide, fraud and other types of
crimes. They are victimized by family members, acquaintances, strangers, institutional
personnel, and caregivers. Many are victimized multiple times.
In addition to people who have been disabled since birth, some people are disabled as a
result of violent assaults. Catastrophic physical injuries may result in loss of
abilities to see, hear, touch, taste, feel, move, and think in the usual ways. Although
statistics on crime-related physical injuries are imperfect, it has been estimated that
at least 6 million serious injuries occur each year due to crime, resulting in either
temporary or permanent disability. The National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC)
has estimated that a large percentage, perhaps as many as 50 percent of patients who are
long-term residents of hospitals and specialized rehabilitation centers are there due to
crime-related injuries. Those patients seldom receive outreach from a crime victim
assistance or compensation program.
Pending a more comprehensive portrait of crime victims within the disability community,
it is important for the victim assistance field to gain a better understanding of that
community as a whole.
According to the National Council on Disability:
As a group, people with disabilities are older, poorer, less educated, and less employed
than people without disabilities. The most widely accepted estimate of the number of people
with disabilities is 49 million non-institutionalized Americans (McNeil, 1993). As such,
people with disabilities constitute the single largest minority group identified in the
United States, surpassing the elderly (about 33.2 million) and African Americans (about
32.7 million) (Bureau of the Census 1995). [Note: The October 1997 update to this report
indicates 54 million Americans reporting having some level of disability, with 26 million
of those having a severe disability.]
Data from the 1990 Census indicate that about 2.3 million residents of institutions have
disabilities, most of these residing in nursing homes. Others live in mental hospitals,
correctional institutions and mental retardation facilities. Mental disability is the most
frequent impairment cited among those living in institutions (LaPlante 1991). In the last
decade, the number of people with disabilities who are homeless has increased, particularly
those with mental disabilities.
The percentage of people with a disability increases with age. While 5 percent of the
population less than age 18 has a disability, 84.2 percent of those age 85 and over have a
disability. Of those age 18-44, 13.6 percent have a disability, while of those age 45-64,
29.2 percent have a disability (McNeil, 1993). As the baby boom generation advances in age,
the number of people with disabilities will likewise increase.
There are differences in the prevalence of severe disability among races, ethnicity groups
and sexes. For the population aged 15-64, 7.4 percent of Whites had severe disabilities,
compared to 12.7 percent of African Americans, 11.7 percent of American Indians, Eskimos or
Aleuts, 9.1 percent of those from Hispanic origin and 4.5 percent of Asian or Pacific
Islanders. Males had a disability rate of 18.7 percent and a severe disability rate of 8.1
percent. For females, the corresponding rates were 20.2 percent and 11 percent (McNeil,
1993).
C Achieving Independence: The Challenge for the 21st Century,
Report of the National Council on Disability, July 26, 1996, pages 13-14.
Purpose of the Project
The Symposium participants came together to develop an action plan for victim service
providers and other allied professionals to improve their capacity to identify and respond
to crime victims with disabilities. Over the course of 2 days, participants identified
issues, service gaps, and barriers to access; recommended needed changes; and spotlighted
successful programs and promising practices that reach and serve crime victims with a wide
array of disabling conditions. The Symposium provided an opportunity for a candid exchange
of ideas among a diverse array of individuals and the organizations that they represented.
Although unanimity did not always reign, participants were united in their quest of
affording all crime victims fundamental justice and comprehensive services.
In the months before the Symposium, NOVA and OVC staff identified knowledgeable people from
the fields of disability rights, protection and advocacy, crime victim assistance, law, and
research. A number of these pioneers were invited to attend the 2-day transfer-of-knowledge
Symposium. Resource materials were identified for Symposium attendees to review, and an
agenda was designed that included presentations from experts, facilitated discussion, and
small working groups. Symposium participants focused on promising practices currently in
use and identified areas for future action. The Symposium was recorded so that a full
transcript would be available to aid in developing the recommendations report and
subsequently this Bulletin.
Participants began their discussion by addressing the following questions:
Unique Issues Identified
During the Symposium, participants raised many issues that criminal justice and victim
assistance professionals need to consider when working with crime victims with
disabilities. Although this list is not exhaustive, it is representative of some of the
main concerns of the group.
Crime Victims with Disabilities Have Distinct Issues
Most issues that confront crime victims with disabilities are issues that affect all crime
victims. They include underreporting of crimes; a lack of responsiveness from law
enforcement or prosecutors based on a perceived lack of credibility on the part of the
victim; repeated victimization; lack of effective, appropriate services, physical or social
isolation of the victim; and a judicial process that is centered on the rights and needs of
the offender, not the victim. However, there are important issues and even distinctions
that must be emphasized when serving victims with disabilities.
Vocabulary Assigned to the Disablility Community
The words that we use are important, as the following issues demonstrate:
Diverse Needs
There is no single, monolithic " disability community." It is made up of many smaller
communities that may vary from one geographic location to another, and according to the
type of disability:
Highlighting Promising Practices
In preparation for the Symposium, NOVA staff identified victim assistance programs that
were making inroads in reaching out to crime victims with disabilities, as well as
pertinent training materials. NOVA is continuing to seek information about effective
programs and training materials that focus on serving crime victims with disabilities.
The following are organizations which were highlighted at the Symposium, as well as a few
from programs who were unable to have a representative present.
1. The Domestic Violence Initiative for Women With Disabilities was founded to create,
promote, and support viable alternatives for women with disabilities who are
victims/survivors of domestic violence and/or caretaker abuse. This program also serves
those who have become disabled as a result of domestic abuse. DVI provides extensive
education and training to relevant service providers and the public about domestic
violence and disability issues. For more information, call 303-839-5510 voice/tdd
(Denver, CO).
2. The Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault Developmental Disabilities
Resource Center operates a sexual abuse prevention and information program for persons
with disabilities. For more information, call 816-931-4527 (Kansas City, MO).
3. The Network of Victim Assistance has produced a training curriculum and video entitled
" Your Safety, Your Rights," which highlights personal safety and abuse prevention
information for adults with disabilities and for service providers. For more information,
call 215-348-5664 (Doylestown, PA).
4. Abused Deaf Women's Advocacy Services (ADWAS) is a program of advocacy and services
specifically for Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard-of-Hearing victims of domestic violence and
sexual assault. Services include a 24-hour crisis line and safe homes for battered women.
ADWAS was developed and is administered by Marilyn Smith, a sexual assault survivor who
is Deaf. In 1996, Ms. Smith received the Crime Victim Service Award, the highest Federal
award for service to victims. For more information, call 206-726-0093 (TTY only) or email
to hilsmjs@aol.com (Seattle, WA).
5. The Hennepin County Attorney's Office and Crime Victim Initiative have spearheaded
development of a training program entitled " Police and People with Disabilities,"
focusing on the important role of law enforcement in serving crime victims with
disabilities. For more information, call 800-279-8284 (Minneapolis, MN).
6. The Victim Services Unit of the Ventura County District Attorney's Office has a
history of seeking out under served victim groups in the county. Their program which
serves crime victims with disabilities is one of several unique services they
provide.
For more information, call 805-654-2500 (Ventura, CA).
7. Victim Services 2000, a demonstration project funded by OVC to showcase a
comprehensive, seamless model of victim assistance, has worked closely with disability
rights specialists in the community to provide training to local victim service providers
on how to best serve crime victims with disabilities. For more information, call
303-640-4933 (Denver, CO).
8. Victim Assistance to Deaf Adults and Children (VADAC). The Department of Public Safety
in South Carolina awarded VOCA funding to the State Department of Mental Health Services
to deliver comprehensive victim assistance to Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing crime victims in
fifteen counties in upstate South Carolina. Most services are provided in the home by
case managers who are fluent in American Sign Language. Services include interpreting,
case management, crisis counseling, therapy, victim rights information, and information
about other available services. For more information, call 864-297-5044 or 864-297-5130
(TTY) (State of South Carolina).
9. Domestic Violence Access Project. In the State of Hawaii, the Department of the
Attorney General has awarded Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) grant funding to a
statewide project that is developing linkages between domestic violence programs and
service providers working with women with disabilities. The project provides specialized
equipment to aid in providing services, as well as training for disability service
providers on the nature of domestic violence and how to recognize it, how to elicit
necessary information from victims and how to access available services. The development
of partnerships and protocols for collaborative efforts should result in better services
for domestic violence victims with disabilities. For more information, call 808-534-0040
(State of Hawaii).
10. Barrier Free Living, Inc., (BFLI) has been working with family violence victims with
disabilities for the past 10 years, and has recently expanded its program to include a
hotline for victims with disabilities. In 1986, BFLI received a national award from the
National Safety Council for Improving the Lives of People With Disabilities. A report
entitled Domestic Violence and Women and Children with Disabilities by BFLI Executive
Director Paul Feuerstein provides an excellent overview of the problems of women and
children with disabilities. For more information, call 212-677-6668 (New York, NY).
11. Advocacy for Women and Kids in Emergencies (AWAKE) is a program for battered women
who are recovering from substance abuse, as well as battered women with physical and
cognitive disabilities. Services are offered in a local hospital, community health
center, and a public housing project. The available counseling, educational, and advocacy
services focus on the development of self-esteem, parenting skills, healing and
self-discovery, and ultimately, for a future based on sobriety. For more information,
call 617-355-4760 (Boston, MA).
12. Back to Life is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to creating opportunities
for people with disabilities to participate fully and safely in their communities. The
organization provides training and technical assistance to crime victims with
disabilities and to the practitioners who work with these victims. For more information,
call 512-255-1465, Fax 512-255-1746, or email: btl@inetport.com (Austin, TX).
Recommendations for Criminal Justice Agencies and Victim Service
Programs
Many of the recommendations presented by the Symposium participants apply to all criminal
justice agencies: law enforcement, prosecution, judiciary, corrections, and victim
assistance. All agencies must work in concert with one another to ensure that vulnerable
victims are identified and served. However, since the focus of this Bulletin is on
improved victim assistance services, emphasis is placed on recommendations for those who
work in victim assistance programs. Victim assistance program staff interested in
implementing any of the recommendations are welcome to contact NOVA or OVC staff for
suggestions on how to get started. Many of the recommendations apply equally to those
victim assistance programs that are not based in a criminal justice agency.
Physical Accessibility
1. Criminal justice agencies and victim assistance programs should receive training on
the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and should support its
vigorous enforcement. Agencies/programs should take advantage of technical assistance
provided by the Federal government to help ensure enforcement of the ADA. Programs that
are not required to abide by the letter of the law should commit to adhering to the
spirit of the law. This will help to ensure equal access to the justice system-as called
for by Federal law and State constitutional amendments and statutes.
2. When full physical accessibility is not immediately achievable, criminal justice
agencies and victim assistance programs should initiate transition planning that focuses
on obtaining accessibility by a designated date. Public and nonprofit agencies should
understand that development of compliance plans are typically mandated under Titles II
and III of the ADA, and with some exceptions, compliance plans are required, not
optional. These compliance plans serve as a roadmap in taking incremental steps to
improve accessibility, even if complete implementation of the plan must be delayed. The
victim assistance sector should join with disability advocates and representatives of the
various populations within the community to conduct a community needs assessment survey
to ensure that the compliance plan is appropriate and effective.
Networking and Cross-Training
3. Criminal justice and victim assistance personnel should receive training on
disabilities, including developing an understanding of disability cultures. Special
efforts should be made to identify qualified victim advocates with disabilities as
trainers. In addition, criminal justice agencies and victim assistance programs should
enlist qualified people with a wide range of different disabilities to lead in all stages
of policy development, decisionmaking, program development, and service delivery for
crime victims with disabilities from the time of the crime through case disposition and
beyond. People with disabilities should be proactively recruited and trained to become
volunteers and paid staff members in criminal justice-oriented programs, especially in
system-based or private victim assistance programs.
4. Criminal justice agencies and vic-tim assistance programs should reach out proactively
to local disability service organizations. They should provide them with information
about victim rights and services, then the service organization in turn, can inform their
constituents on how better to access the criminal justice system, particularly the victim
assistance programs.
5. Criminal justice agencies and victim assistance programs must develop coalitions,
cross-training, and joint training opportunities with disability advocacy and services
programs to build better working relationships and to better understand the services each
offer when working with people with disabilities.6 In some communities, this coalition
could be formalized as an interagency team or coordinating council, including involvement
of local or State governmental task forces on disabilities. Communities may wish to
emulate the models developed within the domestic violence victim advocacy community. The
Commonwealth of Kentucky's Model Protocol for Local Coordinating Councils on Domestic
Violence could be a useful guide. Call 502-564-2611 for information.
6. Collaborative partnerships must also be fostered with other community-based entities,
such as schools, social service agencies, citizen groups, and churches or synagogues.
Utilizing the resources of the entire community will help to ensure that service delivery
is seamless, more inclusive, and does not duplicate or waste limited resources.
7. Leaders in the victim assistance and disability advocacy fields should work together
to develop and utilize innovative ways to communicate, such as e-mail listservs. These
links would allow the timely sharing of information and ideas between disability groups
and individuals with expertise in disability rights and services with similar experts in
victim rights and services. Regional and State Web sites devoted to the needs of crime
victims offer another way of fostering this exchange.
Direct Services
8. Agencies should implement or extend streamlined interviewing and intake procedures so
that crime victims with disabilities, particularly those with cognitive or communications
disabilities, do not have to bear repeated interviewing in different locations. A
multidisciplinary approach involving a law enforcement officer, a prosecutor, a victim
assistance specialist, and others, as needed, in victim-friendly environments would be
more effective and cost-efficient.
9. Agencies should develop and implement specific protocols on disclosures,
confidentiality, and safety for crime victims with disabilities, particularly where there
is potential for retaliation by a caregiver or a disability services agency. For example,
when a crime victim reports to a law enforcement officer (or, when it does not get
reported to a police agency, to a victim advocate), that he or she is being victimized by
a caregiver and has reason to fear for his or her safety, that victim should be provided
with assistance to relocate if necessary and to have emergency replacement caregiver
services provided.
10. Criminal justice agencies and victim assistance programs should be proactive in
acquiring assistive technology that would help crime victims with disabilities to be
informed, present, heard, and understood more effectively when they communicate with law
enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, and victim advocates. For example, victim
assistance service providers should know what accommodations will be needed so that a
person with a communication disability can make a Victim Impact Statement at the time of
sentencing. Assistive technology and accommodations costs (i.e., for computer software,
sign language interpreters, paratransit, etc.) should be considered part of the cost of
" doing business."
Victim assistance agencies should be aware that under Federal VOCA guidelines, VOCA funds
may be used to make services accessible to victims with disabilities. Specific allowable
costs include the purchase of items such as Braille equipment or TTY/TTD machines, or for
minor building improvements that make services more accessible to victims with
disabilities. Specific guidance is contained in the Office of Justice Programs, Office of
the Comptroller, Financial Guide.
11. Once the agency is accessible and staff is trained, criminal justice agencies and
victim assistance programs should publicize their ability to work with crime victims with
disabilities by putting the universal symbol of access (the line drawing of a wheelchair)
and a TDD/TTY number on all literature, promotional materials, business cards, etc., used
by the agency.
12. Victim assistance and criminal justice agencies should incorporate into existing
policies, procedures, and protocols the specific inclusion of persons with disabilities
who are victims/witnesses of domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse, impaired
driving crashes, survivors of homicide victims, or other violent personal crimes.
Parallel policies should be written to cover economic crimes committed against people
with disabilities.
13. Statistical information about crime victims with disabilities should be
systematically collected by criminal justice agencies and victim assistance programs,
using the ADA to define disability status.
14. Prosecutors should invoke hate crimes statutes, if indicated, when prosecuting crimes
against people with disabilities. Judges should apply equal sentencing or sentencing
enhancements, when allowed, for offenders who victimize people with disabilities.
15. When a violent personal crime occurs against a person with a disability who is
institutionalized, the investigation of the crime should not be handled administratively
or informally by the institution's own investigators. Dan Sorensen, in his California
Victims of Crime Committee Report (January 12, 1997), noted that there were several
studies that suggested that 80 percent to 85 percent of criminal abuse of residents of
institutions (an estimated 2.3 million people) never reached law enforcement authorities.
Criminal prosecution should be pursued in cases of violent crime.
Recommendations for National, State, and Local Disability Rights
Specialists
While many of the recommendations listed above for victim assistance and allied
professionals in the justice system also apply to disability rights specialists, the
following are suggestions that are specific to disability rights communities.
Furthermore, NOVA and OVC staff can make suggestions on how to locate the necessary
information to get started with these recommendations.
1. Disability rights and services specialists should learn about State and local victim
rights legislation. They should learn how victim assistance programs (both system-based
and private agencies) are set up and how services and resources, including crime victim
compensation, are acces-sed. In addition, this information should be shared with crime
victims with disabilities and their families.
2. People with disabilities, especially young people, should be educated about the nature
of criminal victimization, to whom they should report crimes against them, and how to
access help.
3. Personal safety training should be provided for people with disabilities. People with
substantial disabilities should work with a knowledgeable specialist to develop personal
safety plans.
4. Independent living center staff, benefits rights specialists, protection and advocacy
program staff, and legal rights specialists should be trained on how to access State
crime victim compensation programs to benefit their clients.
5. National disability rights organizations should establish a national scope criminal
justice committee. This committee would establish a national agenda that calls for
disability rights organizations and criminal justice authorities to systematically
address the issue of crime against all groups of people with disabilities.
6. Disability rights advocates need to work with appropriate allies to estab-lish a
personal assistant " bank" for emergencies (to provide backup assist-ants and financial
resources to pay for them).
7. Disability rights advocates should advocate for State laws requiring criminal
background checks on prospective personal assistants and other direct service providers
before they are hired to care for individuals with disabilities. The Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department
of Justice, in conjunction with the American Bar Association Center on Children and the
Law, recently published Guidelines for the Screening of Persons Working with Children,
the Elderly, and Individuals with Disabilities in Need of Support (NCJ# 167248). While
these guidelines do not mandate criminal record checks for all care providers, they do
provide advice on establishing policies to ensure an appropriate level of screening based
on specific situations.
To obtain a copy of this publication, call or write the Juvenile Justice
Clearinghouse/NCJRS, P.O. Box 6000, Rockville, Maryland 20849-6000, telephone number
800-638-8736, fax number 301-519-5212.
8. Personnel of programs that pro-vide services to people with disabilities should be
encouraged and trained to ask about a client's victimization history as part of the
routine intake/assessment process. The disclosure should be entirely voluntary and should
be confidential. If a client discloses that he or she has been a crime victim in the past
or is currently being victimized, the service provider should inform the client that
there may be victim rights laws that offer protection and offer to refer the client to an
appropriate victim assistance agency.
Recommendations for the Office for Victims of Crime
1. OVC should lead the victim assistance field in ensuring that crime victims with
disabilities are afforded basic rights and access to needed services. OVC should
encourage a strong State response to Section IV.A.4 of the Final Program Guidelines for
the VOCA Victim Assistance Grant Program. This Section encourages States to identify gaps
in available services, not just by the types of crimes committed but also by victims'
demographic characteristics, including disability status.
2. OVC should work cooperatively with State Crime Victim Assistance and Compensation
Programs to ensure that regional training for VOCA sub-recipients on the requirements of
the ADA is available. OVC could then develop an annual accessibility " check-list" for
State VOCA administrators, who in turn could provide guidance to VOCA sub-recipients
about complying with the ADA.
3. OVC should promote the use of available resources and foster the identification and
development of other re-sources to help ensure that the victim assistance field
particular those programs funded by VOCA-is educated about issues and concerns relevant
to crime victims with disabilities and trained to provide services efficiently,
effectively, and with compassion.
* States receiving VOCA funds have the option of using up to 6 percent of the State's
victim assistance grant for the purpose of conducting statewide and/or regional training's
of victim services staff. States should be encouraged to use this option to provide
needed training to practitioners on the best practices in serving crime victims with
disabilities.
* OVC should propose and encourage the formation of a Working Group composed of State
VOCA Administrators and service providers to help determine the most effective ways to
utilize available resources.
4. OVC should ensure that training materials developed under OVC Grants and Cooperative
Agreements are available through the OVC Resource Center. They should be offered in a
variety of formats that can be used by victim advocates with disabilities or disseminated
to the disability rights community to better educate consumers with disabilities and
disability service providers. For example, videos produced with OVC funding should be
required to be open-captioned so that Deaf people will be able to use them.
5. OVC should direct VOCA discretionary grant funding to develop training and technical
assistance projects that include a strong focus on serving crime victims with
disabilities. Special attention should be addressed to crime victims with disabilities
from minority and low-income groups, who are least likely of all crime victims to receive
victim assistance services. OVC is currently funding several multiyear demonstration
projects, Victim Services 2000, which are designed to serve as models for communities in
rural and urban settings that wish to develop networks of integrated and comprehensive
services for crime victims. OVC should ensure that the needs and issues of crime victims
with disabilities are addressed comprehensively in these demonstration projects.
6. OVC should work closely with State victim compensation administrators to identify
issues and service gaps related to the long-term medical and mental health needs of crime
victims with disabilities when developing crime victim compensation guidelines. For
example, a long-term medical expense for one Symposium participant who became blind after
being shot, is to be refitted for and to replace her prosthetic eyes every few years; an
expense of about $1,700.
7. OVC should encourage presentations on themes relevant to increasing accessibility of
services for crime victims with disabilities at all State, regional, or national
conferences, conventions, symposia, focus groups or meetings funded by OVC. In
particular, training for VOCA administrators attending the annual VOCA conference should
promote the importance of serving this population of crime victims. The training should
present the most efficient ways to use State VOCA funds to increase physical access
through facility modifications or acquiring specialized communication equipment. OVC
should also study how much VOCA funding is currently being spent annually to increase
access of services to crime victims with disabilities, and how much additional VOCA
funding will be needed to ensure full accessibility.
8. OVC should establish dynamic partnerships with disability communities at the national
level (paralleling local efforts) to encourage policy and program development that will
benefit crime victims with disabilities.
9. OVC should develop a mechanism for using and disseminating the information on
disability status that is currently collected by VOCA sub recipients. Such statistics
could be used to develop " benchmarking" standards.
The Federal Performance Report Working Group should be composed of representatives from
(1) the Office for Victims of Crime and the Violence Against Women Grants Office of the
Office of Justice Programs at the U.S. Department of Justice and (2) The Center for
Disease Control and Ad-ministration on Children and Families of the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services. The Working Group will develop a standardized Statistical
Summary Sub grant Award Report that could be used by all organizations receiving Federal
funding to assist victims of crime from any of these Federal funding sources. OVC should
formally recommend that this standardized report include disability status and the nature
of the disability as part of the demographic data that is collected.
10. The National Victim Assistance Academy, funded by OVC, should build on the current
training component on working with crime victims with disabilities.
Recommendations for Other Department of Justice Agencies
1. The National Institute of Justice should work with the appropriate disability-related
research agencies to establish a long-term research agenda focusing on the needs of crime
victims with disabilities from the time of the occurrence of the crime through the entire
criminal justice process. Such research should seek to determine the best methodologies
for identifying the level and nature of victimization risk, the impact of criminal
victimization on victims with disabilities, the need for specialized types of victim
services, the ability to access victim services, and the challenges posed to the criminal
justice system in investigating and prosecuting the offenders, as well as preventing
future victimization.
2. The OVC funded project administered by the National Institute of Justice on " The
Effectiveness of VOCA Funding in Meeting the Needs of Crime Victims" should incorporate
specific strategies to measure the ability of VOCA sub recipients to identify and serve
crime victims with disabilities and to identify the barriers that impede those
efforts.
3. The National Crime Victimization Survey, the Unified Crime Report, and other data
collection surveys should be redesigned to capture data on the incidence of violence
against people with disabilities and the number of people who become disabled due to
crime-related catastrophic physical injuries. If alternative survey methods are used,
they should be designed and implemented with sufficient resources so that their findings
are as authoritative as others produced by the Department of Justice.
4. Appropriate offices in the Department of Justice should work collaboratively to focus
on the problems of crime against people with disabilities to foster cooperation in the
development of policy initiatives at all governmental levels.
5. The Violence Against Women Grants Office and the Civil Rights Division of the
Department of Justice should work to enhance the physical and attitudinal accessibility
of domestic violence and sexual assault programs to women with disabilities and actively
discourage any kind of discrimination in service provided to persons with
disabilities.
These recommendations represent only a first step toward building a better service
delivery system for crime victims with disabilities. The Symposium participants who
developed these suggestions are committed to continuing their work and to recruiting
others to continue the work that they have begun.
Implications
The victim assistance field has made great progress since
its beginnings in the early 1970's. However, there is much more to achieve in order to
ensure full inclusion and full participation of all crime victims.
Currently, few networks exist to bring together the various specialists in the field of
victim rights and services and their parallel colleagues in the disability rights field.
Until such networks are developed, it is likely that strategies for outreach, training,
and coordinated service delivery will be delayed. Effective networking could promote
participation of people with disabilities in our criminal justice process, ensure timely
delivery of appropriate services to crime victims with disabilities, promote community
awareness of the special needs and concerns of victims with disabilities, and help
disseminate facts about victimization in the varied communities of people with
disabilities. Developing such networks will take the time and energy of many committed
individuals and agencies in both the victim rights and the disability rights arenas. It
is clear that policies will not be changed, service providers will not b e trained, and
help will not be provided without the active involvement of the constituencies for whom
the services are intended. People with disabilities must take a leading role in helping
to determine the future of victim rights and services for themselves, and they must work
in concert with all the various criminal justice entities to make that happen.
Leadership and funding will be needed not only from OVC but also from other appropriate
funding sources to ensure that our criminal justice agencies and victim assistance
programs are fully accessible to people with disabilities and that the staffs of those
programs are appropriately trained to provide quality services. Given the large numbers
of crime victims with disabilities, programs will need additional funding in order to
provide the level of services needed. When funding is not immediately available, program
man-agers will need to be creative in seek-ing alliances with new partners to help make
service delivery a reality. Lack of funding should never be an excuse for excluding any
crime victims from our American system of justice.
Americans with disabilities are a widely diverse group of people with varying levels of
independence and needs. The challenge for the future is to ensure that all people with
disabilities become full participants in the criminal justice system. The National
Council on Disability noted in its Achieving Independence report that the " achievement of
independence for people with disabilities is a test of the very tenets of our democracy.
It is a test we can pass." As victim advocates, we now know that there is a potentially
huge population of un served and under served crime victims who have the right to the
services that we are committed to giving to all crime victims:
* The right to protection from intimidation and harm.
* The right to be informed concerning the criminal justice process.
* The right to counsel.
* The right to reparations.
* The right to preservation of property and employment.
* The right to due process in criminal court proceedings.
* The right to be treated with dignity, compassion, and respect.
While the United States is viewed as the world leader in civil and disability rights,
crime victims with disabilities are largely invisible and their legal rights for
service and justice go un addressed. Criminal rights are carefully monitored by the
justice and legal system; the crime victims' rights movement is striving to achieve
recognition of similar rights and services for the victim, including those with
disabilities.
The challenge for the future is to ensure that all people with disabilities
become full participants in the criminal justice system.
Meeting the needs of crime victims with disabilities presents the criminal justice
system, including the victim assistance field, with a great challenge. It will not be
accomplished simply by extending the umbrella of " victim assistance" to cover more or
even all crime victims with disabilities. Rather, a partnership between the victim
assistance and disability advocacy fields needs to be built that fosters mutual respect
and sharing of ideas, knowledge, capabilities, successes, and collaborative efforts in
order to develop strategies to address the problems. Such a partnership will strengthen
the capability of both victim and disability advocates in their efforts to ensure that
all crime victims are afforded fundamental justice and access to quality, comprehensive
services.
The facts are before us. We cannot turn back now.
For Further Information
For additional information about the project and products related to Working With
Disabled Crime Victims, contact NOVA or OVC at the following addresses and phone
numbers:
Office for Victims of Crime
U.S. Department of Justice
810 7th Street, N.W., 8th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20531
202-307-5983 202-514-6383 fax
National Organization for Victim Assistance
1757 Park Road, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20010
202-232-6682
202-462-2255 fax
Additional Resources
Following are useful resources. The list, of course, is not complete, in the interest of
brevity.
Books
Violence and Abuse in the Lives of People With Disabilities: The End of Silent
Acceptance? Dick Sobsey, R.N., Ed.D., Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company, Baltimore,
MD.
Violence and Disability: An Annotated Bibliography, Dick Sobsey, Don Wells, Richard
Lucardie, Sheila Mansell, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company, Baltimore, MD.
Caregiver Abuse and Domestic Violence in the Lives of Women With Disabilities, Meeting
the Needs of Women With Disabilities: A Blueprint for Change, a Project of Berkeley
Planning Associates. Marlene F. Strong and Ann Cupolo Freeman. 510-465-7884
(booklet).
Curricula and Videos
Your Safety, Your Rights, a personal safety and abuse prevention program for adults with
disabilities and for service providers. Terri Pease, Ph.D. and Beverly Frantz, Network of
Victim Assistance, 215-348-5664.
Charting New Waters: Responding to Violence Against Women With Disabilities, Video and
Facilitators' Guide. Justice Institute of British Columbia, 604-525-5422.
Together We Can Make a Difference: A Police Orientation Manual on Citizens With
Disabilities. Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, Harrisburg, PA.
Police and People With Disabilities. Law Enforcement Resource Center. Minneapolis, MN
800-279-8284.
Miscellaneous
San Francisco Police Department's " Transition Plan for Police Stations and the Hall of
Justice" (re: Americans With Disabilities Act), contact Sgt. Michael J. Sullivan, ADA
Coordinator, 415-553-1343, 415-558-2406 (TTY).
Personal Safety Awareness Center Resource Lending Library Listing of Materials, Austin
Rape Crisis Center, 512-445-5776 x 210.
National Council on Independent Living, 2111 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 405, Arlington, VA
22201, 703-525-3406 (voice), 703-525-3407 (TTY), to locate the nearest Center for
Independent Living.
ADA Information Line
800-514-0301 (Voice)
800-514-0383 (TDD)
The U.S. Department of Justice answers questions about the ADA and provides free
publications by mail and fax through its ADA Information Line; publications may also be
viewed or downloaded at its website.
Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs)
800-949-4232 (Voice/TTD)
The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) of the U.S.
Department of Education has funded a network of grantees throughout the nation to provide
information, training, and technical assistance to agencies and businesses regarding
their responsibilities and duties under the ADA. Your call to the above toll-free number
will be routed to the DBTAC in your region.
President's Committee on Employment of People With Disabilities, List of Chairpersons,
Vice Chairpersons and Secretaries of Governors' Committees on Employment of People With
Disabilities, 202-376-6200 (voice)/376-6205 (TDD). The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is
a service of the President's Committee on Employment of People With Disabilities, and
provides personalized consulting services by giving callers detailed accommodation
solutions and answers to specific questions about the ADA. Call 800-ADA-WORK
(800-232-9675) voice/tty. Computer Bulletin Board: 800-Dial-JAN, 800-342-5526). Web Site:
http://janweb.icdi.wvu.edu. The Access Board provides ADA accessibility guidelines for
new construction and compliance issues for facilities built with Federal dollars. Call
202-272-5434 voice, 202-272-5549 tty.
Related Web Sites
www.cavnet.org
www.boystown.org/research/abused.html
www.quasar.ualberta.ca/ddc/ddb/sobleymansell.html
www.psych-health.com/death.html
www.psych-health.com/tony.html
www.vh.org/Welcome/UIHC/UIHCMedDepts/Peds/ ChildAbuse/DHSAdult.html
www.realtime.net/austinrapecrisis/HTML/psac.htm
www.pcepd.gov
www.icdi.wvu.edu/tech/ada.htm
Symposium Participants (Advisors)
OVC and NOVA thank the following advisors who attended the 2-day Symposium, and to many
others who were unable to attend, but lent their information and support.
Diane Alexander, National Victim Center, Arlington, VA
Nora J. Baladerian, Ph.D., Spectrum Institute, Disability, Abuse and Personal Rights
Project, Culver City, CA
Diane Bryen, Institute on Disabilities/UAP, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
Barbara Burkhardt, Office of the Attorney General, Division of Victim Services,
Tallahassee, FL
Charlotte Clarke, Victim/Witness Assistance Unit, U.S. Attorney's Office, Washington,
D.C.
Marcie Davis, Crisis Response of Santa Fe, Santa Fe, NM
Dan Eddy, National Association of Crime Victim Compensation Boards, Alexandria, VA
Sharon D'Eusanio, Division of Victim Services, Office of the Attorney General, Boca
Raton, FL
Barbara Waxman Fiduccia, Center for Women Policy Studies, Cupertino, CA
Beverly L. Frantz, Network of Victim Assistance, Sellersville, PA
Marc Gallucci, Esq., Center for Disability Rights, Victims of Crime Coalition of
Connecticut, New Haven, CT
Wilson Hulley, President's Committee on Employment of People With Disabilities,
Washington, D.C.
Kerry A. Klockner, Washington Coalition of Citizens with disABILITIES, Seattle, WA
Pat Laird, Administration on Developmental Disabilities, U.S. Dept. of Health/Human
Services, Washington, D.C.
Morna Murray, Esq., VALOR, Alexandria, VA
Kim Musheno, The Arc, Washington, D.C.
Brooke O'Kelly, The RiteAway Team, Beverly Hills, CA
Debbie O'Neill, Ventura County District Attorney's Office Victim Services Unit, Ventura,
CA
Joan Petersilia, Ph.D., University of California, Irvine, Santa Barbara, CA
Barbara Ransom, Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia (PILCOP), Philadelphia, PA
Dan Rosenblatt, International Association of Chiefs of Police, Alexandria, VA
Tom Satterly, Riverview, FL
Jane Nady Sigmon, Ph.D., American Prosecutors' Research Institute, Alexandria, VA
Marilyn Smith, Abused Deaf Women's Advocacy Services, Seattle, WA
Richard Sobsey, Ph.D., Developmental Disabilities Center. University of Alberta,
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Lisa Sonneborn, Institute on Disabilities/UAP, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
Dan Sorensen, Criminal Justice Task Force for Persons With Developmental Disabilities,
Sacramento, CA
Linda Spies, Denver, CO
Sergeant Michael J. Sullivan, ADA Coordinator, San Francisco Police Department, San
Francisco, CA
Patricia M. Sullivan, Ph.D., Center for Abused Children with Disabilities, Boys Town
National Research Hospital, Omaha, NE
Sean Sweeney, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Dept. of
Education, Washington, D.C.
Christine Thompson, Crime Victim Initiative, Hennepin County Attorney's Office,
Minneapolis, MN
Richard Titus, Ph.D, National Institute of Justice, Washington, D.C.
Reginald F. Wells, Ph.D., Administration on Developmental Disabilities, U.S. Dept. of
Health/Human Services, Washington, D.C.
Jody Wildy, D.C. Center for Independent Living, Washington, D.C.
Mary Ellen Young, Ph.D., Center for Research on Women With Disabilities, Baylor College
of Medicine, Houston, TX
1 RAINN, 635-B Pennsylvania Avenue, S.E., Washington, DC 20003
2 Violence and Abuse in the Lives of People With Disabilities: The End of Silent
Acceptance?, Dick Sobsey, R.N., Ed.D., 1994, pp. 75-76, Paul H. Brookes Publishing
Co.
3 Your Safety . . . Your Rights and Personal Safety and Abuse Prevention Education Program
to Empower Adults with Disabilities and Train Service Providers. T. Pease and B. Frantz,
1994, Doylestown, PA: Network of Victim Assistance.
4 Assault Experiences of 100 Psychiatric Inpatients: Evidence for the Need for Routine
Inquiry. Jacobson, A. and Richardson, B. (1987) American Journal of Psychiatry, 144(7),
908-913.)
5 Domestic Violence and Women and Children With Disabilities, Millbank Memorial Fund
Report, Paul Feuerstein, June 1997, unpublished
6 NOVA has presented at least one workshop on a disability-related topic at its annual
conferences since the early 1980's. In 1998, NOVA will present a plenary session on
working with crime victims with disabilities, along with a track of six workshops devoted
to this issue. The Office for Victims of Crime is sponsoring two of these workshops,
including one on requirements of the ADA and technical assistance available to victim
assistance agencies to meet these requirements. Crime victim advocates with disabilities
will work closely with the conference coordinator to design and present the plenary
session and the workshops.
This bulletin was prepared under cooperative agreement number 97-BF-GX-K022, awarded to
the National Organization for Victim Assistance, by the Office for Victims of Crime,
Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The findings and conclusions are
those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of
the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Office for Victims of Crime is a component of the Office of Justice Programs which
also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the
National Institute of Justice, and the Office for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention.
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resources.