Contrasting the Emergence of the Victims’ Movements in the United States and England and Wales

Abstract

Over the years, the role of victims in the criminal process has considerably evolved in common law jurisdictions, particularly in the United States and England and Wales. These notable developments have varied greatly between these two jurisdictions. These differences are in great part attributed to the different forces and rationales behind the emergence of the early victims’ movements in these respective jurisdictions. Indeed, the movements in the United States and England and Wales adopted different philosophies, strategies, and members came from different backgrounds, which can account for the differences in policies. This article engages in a process of comparative distancing between the forces that drove the movements, as well as the context under which they operated in order to understand the different policies, legal responses and debates that relate to the role of victims of crime in the two selected jurisdictions.

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“…Los estudios de Garland (2005) mostraron con claridad que algunos de los elementos centrales de la transformación registrada en las respuestas estatales frente al delito son el reconocimiento, la legitimidad y el rol crecientemente importante que ocupan las víctimas. En Estados Unidos, por ejemplo, esta dinámica de ascenso es producto tanto de movimientos de víctimas de homicidios como de aquellos ligados a los derechos de las mujeres y la violencia de género o racial (Lepore, 2018;Manikis, 2019). Durante la década del setenta, el movimiento feminista logró exitosamente tematizar la violencia contra las mujeres y sobre esa base se crearon los primeros centros de atención a víctimas de violación y violencia doméstica (Young y Stein, 2004, p. 3).…”

Challenges of Effective Communication in the Criminal Justice Process: Findings from Interviews with Victims of Sexual Offences in Australia

“…Since then, victims' rights instruments have been introduced in Australia and other jurisdictions worldwide (for a comparison between the United Kingdom and United States (US), see Manikis 2019). These instruments reflect many of the United Nations Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime, such as victims' right to receive information about their case as it progresses through the justice system.…”

Editors’ Introduction: ‘Access to Justice: Historical Approaches to Victims of Crime’

“…Marie Manikis compares the rise and outcomes of victims' movements in the US and England from the mid-twentieth century onwards. Her comparison demonstrates, among other things, how the adversarial legal models common to both states flexed differently in response to these movements [5]. David Miers' article examines a key element of the modern state's response to crime: the payment of state compensation to 'blameless' victims of personal and sexual violence through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.…”