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a request

Hey all, I was wondering if some of you guys help me.
I need to find information that can help me find an answer to this question, or your opinions on it.

"should a victim of crime have more say in the criminal justice procedure? Discuss".

Any opinions or info you have would help me, A LOT.

And it would also make an interesting topic for discussion.
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not sure what you actually mean by 'invovement', at what stage were you thinking?

    Without knowing this, I would say no, most people involved in the process are highlytrained, intelligent people I cannot see what having Joe Bloggs involved could add to the process of establishing justice.....
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Toadborg:
    <STRONG>I'm not sure what you actually mean by 'invovement', at what stage were you thinking?
    </STRONG>
    I can't find the word 'involvement' (or "invovement") in his post <IMG SRC="confused.gif" border="0" ALT="icon">
    <STRONG>I would say no, most people involved in the process are highlytrained, intelligent people I cannot see what having Joe Bloggs involved could add to the process of establishing justice.....</STRONG>
    I mostly agree.
    We can't have victims of crime becoming judge, jury and executioner. It makes a mockery of the whole justice system. I know that probably isn't what you meant by "more say", but it is important to remember that the 'victim' (defendant is innocent until proven guilty) is only a witness, and is unlikely to have any legal training.

    Obviously it all depends how you interpret the question. If you were to think of "more say" as a retrospective focus group, for example, then I think the legal process may well benefit from that. But if "more say" meant consulting the victim on the type or duration of punishment then it gets more tricky.

    You hear every now and then about the victim asking for leniency for the defendant. That's all very well and I think should be considered by the judge, but at the end of the day, the victim can only speak from the perspective of one crime. Most petty offences are committed by serial offenders, and in that case evidence from the police should be given more weight.

    [Having said all that, I have never studied law or criminology, and this is merely my own personal opinion as a 'lay-person'.]

    [ 25-04-2002: Message edited by: Kentish ]
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    Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I can't find the word 'involvement' (or "invovement") in his post
    Bad spelling and blindness by me there <IMG SRC="rolleyes.gif" border="0" ALT="icon"> , I meant the "more say" bit as I'm sure you realised.....
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