Provisions relating to treatment and rights of victims generally. VICTIMS

Question 1

What does S 7 - Treatment relate to?

Answer 1

Any person who deals with a victim should treat the victim with courtesy and compassion and respect the victims dignity and privacy.

Question 2

What does S 8 Access to services relate to?

Answer 2

A victim or member of a victims family who has welfare, health, counselling, medical or legal needs arising from the offence should have access to services that are responsive to those needs.

Question 3

S 9 Restorative justice meetings to resolve issues relating to offence

Answer 3

(1) This section applies if a victim requests to meet the offender to resolve issues relating to the offence.
(2) A member of court of court staff a Police employee or if appropriate a probation officer must if satisfied that the necessary resources are available, refer the request to a suitable person who is available to arrange and facilitate a restorative justice meeting.

Question 4

S 10 What are the enforceability of principals?

Answer 4

Sections 7 to 9 and the principals in them guiding the treatment of victims, do not confer on any person any legal right that is enforceable, for example in a court of law.

Question 5

S 11 What information about programmes and remedies and services should be given to victims?

Answer 5

(1) A victim must as soon as practicable after the victim comes into contact with an agency be given information by the personnel of the agency about programmes, remedies or services available to the victim through the agency.

Question 6

In section 11 sub section (2) what does agency mean?

Answer 6

ACC, DHB, Department of corrections, Ministry of justice, Ministry of social development, NZ Police. Services include participation in restorative justice processes.

Question 7

In section 11 explain subsection (3)?

Answer 7

Nothing in this section prevents information of a kind that under this section must be given to a victim of an offence from also being given to any other person eg, a person who was disadvantaged by the offence.

Question 8

S 12 Information about proceedings 1

Answer 8

(1) A victim must as soon as practicable be given information by investigating authorities or as the case requires by members of court staff, or the prosecutor about the following matters.
(a) the progress of the investigation of the offence
(b) the charges laid or reasons for not laying charges and all changes to the charges laid
(c) The victims role as a witness in the prosecution of the offence
(ca) The possibility (if any) of the court making an order prohibiting the publication of identifying information about the victim, and the steps that the victim may take in relation to the making of that order
(d) the date and place of each event listed in subsection (2)
(e) the outcome of the prosecution of the offence (and of any proceedings on appeal eg
any guilty plea or conviction entered and sentence imposed or substituted or any findings that an accused is unfit to stand trial or any findings that the charge was not proved or any acquittal or deemed acquittal or grant of free pardon.

Question 9

13 Limits on duties to give information under sections 11 and 12.

Answer 9

13 (1) Nothing in section 11 or section 12 requires any person to give information if good reason for withholding the information would exist under any of sections 6,7, and 9 of the official information act 1982, if a request for that information were made under that act.

(2) An example of a case where good reason of that kind for withholding information would exist is where the giving of the information would be likely to prejudice the maintenance of the law, including the prevention, investigation, and detection of offences, and the right to a fair trial
(3) Nothing in section 11 or section 12 affects any enactment. Rule of law, or order or direction of a court that prohibits or restricts the making available of information of a kind referred to in section 11 or section 12 (for example, one forbidding the publication, in a report or account of proceedings in respect of an offence, of the name of or of any particulars likely to identify, a participant in the proceedings).

Question 10

14 Information may be given to victims support person

Answer 10

Information required to be given under section 11 or 12 may be given to a support person of a victim if the victim

a) cannot receive it or
b) is not, or may not be capable alone of understanding it
c) has in writing nominated that support person to receive it and given a current address for that support person

Question 11

15 Victims rights under privacy act 1993

Answer 11

1) No person may interfere with the privacy of a victim contrary to the Privacy Act 1993
2) This section is not limited by section 7, and does not limit affect, or give any person any rights separate from, or additional to the Privacy Act 1993.

Question 12

16 Restriction on disclosing victims contacts details in evidence provided to the Court.

Answer 12

1) This section applies to information (the information) that discloses, or that may lead to the disclosure of a victims contacts details.
2) The information may be given in evidence or in information provided to a court only with the leave of the judicial officer.
3) The judicial officer must not grant leave unless satisfied
a) that the information is directly relevant to t he facts in issue in the proceedings and
b) that the evidential value of the information (if any) outweighs any prejudice to the victims interests, or any harm to the victim, that is likely to be caused by the giving of the information.
4) In this section, contact details means any 1 or more of the following
a) residential address
b) postal address
c) email address
d) home phone
e) bus phone
f) mobile phone

Question 13

16a Criminal Proceedings to which section 16 does not apply.

Answer 13

Nothing in section 16 applies to a criminal proceeding if it is necessary to disclose the information in order in ensure that the defendant is fully and fairly informed of the nature of the charge.

Question 14

17AA Victim impact statement defined

Answer 14

1) In sections 17ab to 27 victim impact statement
a) means information that
(i) is ascertained under section 17 from
(A) a victim ot
(B) a person who under section 20 is treated as a victim and
(ii) is to be or has been submitted
(A) under section 21AA, on request, to a judicial officer for the purpose of giving the accused a sentence indication
(B) under section 21 to the judicial officer sentencing the offender and
(b) includes any recordings, summary, transcript, or other copy of that information.
2) In this section, information may include any photographs, drawings, or other visual representations provided by the victim

Question 15

17AB Purpose of victim impact statements

Answer 15

(a) enable the victim to provide information to the court about the effects of the offending
(b) assist the court in understanding the victims views about the offending and
(c) inform the offender about the impact of the offending from the victims perspective.

Question 16

17 Information to be ascertained from victim

Answer 16

(1) The prosecutor must make all reasonable efforts to ensure that information about the matters specified in subsection (2) is ascertained from the victim.
(2) The matters referred to in subsection (1) are
- any physical injury or emotional harm suffered by the victim through, or by means of the offence.
- Any loss of or damage to property suffered by the victim through or by means of the offence and
- Any other effects of the offence on the victim and
- Any other matter consistent with the purpose of victim impact statements set out in section 17AB
(3) If a person is a victim in terms of paragraph (a)(iii) of the definition of “victim” in section 4, then a reference in subsection (2)(a) to (c) of this section to the victim includes a reference to the child or young person concerned
(4) If a person is a victim in terms of paragraph (a)(iv) of the definition of “victim” in section 4 because a member of that persons immediate family is incapable, then a reference in subsection (2)(a) to (c) of this section to the victim includes a reference to the incapable person concerned.

Question 17

18 Procedure before ascertaining information from victim

Answer 17

The prosecutor must make all reasonable efforts to ensure information is ascertained from a victim under section 17,

(a) that the victim is informed
(i) that the information is being ascertained for a victim impact statement and
(ii) that the victim must ensure that any information that he or she gives is true and
(iii) that the information must be recorded, and may be verified in the way stated in section 19(3) or (4) and
(b) that the victim is informed about who may properly see or make or keep copies of the VIS and about the orders, directions, and conditions relating to disclosure and distribution of it, that may be made under sections 24(3)(b), 25 and 27 and
(c) that any views the victim has on whether the prosecutor should apply for orders, directions, or conditions of that kind are ascertained.

Question 18

19 Form and verification of information ascertained.

Answer 18

(1) Information ascertained from a victim under section 17 must be put into writing or recorded in another way i.i audio tape or video tape, unless the victim objects to it being included in the VIS
(2) Information recorded under subsection (1) may be verified
(a) in the way stated in subsection (3) if practicable or (b) If it is not practicable to verify it in the way stated in subsection (3). in the way stated in subsection (4)
(3)