Chapter 5 Supplement Financial Assistance for

Victims of Crime

The California State Board of Control (SBOC) has enacted legislation that expands the definitions of victims of crime who are eligible for compensation:

• Children who witness an act of domestic violence are now presumed to have sustained physical injury and are eligible for a higher level of compensation benefits (Government Code #13960 (B) (3)).

• The definition of derivative victim has been expanded to include persons who become primary caregivers of minors who were victims of child abuse or sexual abuse, and to include residents of other states (Government Code #13960 (A) (2)).

• Vehicular manslaughter (motor vehicle and water vehicle) has been added to the list of eligible crimes (Government Code #13960 (c) (5)).

• A minor under sixteen years of age who sustains emotional injury due to unlawful sexual intercourse with a person over the age of twenty-one is now presumed to have sustained physical injury if felony charges are filed (Government Code #13960 (d) (2) (I)).

The legislation expands benefits for expenses incurred by an adult victim in relocating away from the defendant:

• Adds benefits for expenses to install or increase residential security related to a crime in the victim's home.

• Adds benefits for the expense of retrofitting a residence or vehicle to make it accessible to a victim if the victim is permanently disabled as a result of a crime (Chapter 584 Statutes of 1999 (California Assembly Bill 606) 1 January 2000).

• In an effort to increase awareness and knowledge about compensation benefits for victims of crime, and to stimulate greater involvement of victim service professionals in assisting victims to apply for compensation benefits, many state compensation programs have initiated and developed trainings for this purpose. For example, Pennsylvania has developed an extensive series of trainings called "connections" trainings, bringing together victim advocates, police officers, prosecutors, and community leaders. These regional training programs emphasize the need for collaboration among criminal justice system personnel and other allied victim service professionals in ensuring that victims' needs for information and assistance in applying for compensation benefits are comprehensively met.

Other states that have initiated such training include New Mexico, which offers both basic and advanced training on compensation on a monthly basis, and Florida, which requires all VOCA subgrantees to send personnel to a multiday basic training that includes several hours on crime victims' compensation.

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