Sexual Violence Against Marginalized Victims: Choice of Victim or Victim of Choice?

Research shows that sex trade workers and homeless populations are at a high risk of severe violence and homicide. Based on a sample of 229 violent sex offenders, we investigate the differences between sexual crimes committed against marginalized (n = 73) and nonmarginalized victims (n = 156). Findings from logistic regression analyses show that offenders who target marginalized victims are more likely to degrade their victim and use a variety of torture methods. However, offenders who target nonmarginalized victims are more likely to use a weapon, and kill the victim by strangulation. Implications for future research are discussed.     

Reasons for Victims’ Nonreporting Practices in Lagos,Nigeria: A Qualitative Study

Nonreporting practices have significant effects on public safety, yet the scientific community knows little about the reasons that predispose victims towards nonreporting in Lagos, Nigeria. The author examined the reasons using qualitative methods, and used a purposive sampling technique to select participants. Data were content analyzed. The findings indicated that economic and sociocultural considerations account for nonreporting among victims. The study concluded that numerous economic and sociocultural reasons including poverty, police extortion, and taboos explain nonreporting among victims, and suggests that the government should strengthen families and schools to transmit reporting values to children for safer communities in Lagos, Nigeria.     

“TO ME ITS [SIC] REAL LIFE”: Secondary Victims of Homicide in Newer Media

This article explores what happened when two people personally affected by a 1999 homicide participated in an online forum in which the homicide was being discussed. The two individuals in question were the younger brother of the victim and the elder brother of the man convicted of her murder. The case had been the subject of a 12-part audio podcast called Serial. An online forum—the Serial Subreddit—had been set up independently of the podcast and its producers as a space for listeners to discuss their views on the case. We analyzed the contributions of the two aforementioned individuals and the responses they received. We argue that new media spaces like the Serial Subreddit break down the traditional barriers between those personally affected by homicide and consumers of mediated representations of homicide. As such, they raise important questions for criminologists.     

Crime Victims’ Perceptions of Police Behavior,Legitimacy, and Cooperation: A Review of the Literature

According to Tyler’s theoretical framework, police officers can motivate cooperation among citizens during direct interactions by using fair procedures and by showing how the police perform their job in combating crime. By conducting a systematic literature review, prior research was examined to see whether perceptions of procedural justice and police performance result in higher levels of perceived legitimacy of the police institution, and in turn whether this perceived legitimacy stimulates cooperative behavior among crime victims specifically. Results of the 15 included studies indicate that partial support for the applicability of this framework on crime victims was found. However, none of the included studies tested all relationships within the framework simultaneously among crime victims; they typically focused only on one of the interrelationships between the frameworks’ key concepts. Implications for future research and police practice are discussed.     

Healing through Action? The Political Mobilization of Victims of Al Qaeda-Inspired Violence in Spain and the United Kingdom

Spain and the United Kingdom have experienced similar types of political violence. Since the 1960s, both countries have suffered casualties as a result of long-standing ethno-nationalist conflicts as well as terrorist attacks by Al Qaeda–inspired groups. In spite of these similarities, the two countries display a striking variation in the attitudes to victims. In Spain, Associations of Victims of Terrorism have been highly visible and influential, whereas United Kingdom-based organizations have not captured the public's imagination and the attention of policymakers in the same way. Spanish associations of victims have been present in the public sphere and have routinely provided their opinions on counterterrorist policy and appropriate government legislation whereas this sort of political activity is difficult to trace in the United Kingdom. As a result of this puzzle, the article tries to answer the following question: Why are associations of victims of terrorism by Al Qaeda–inspired attacks more influential in Spain than in the United Kingdom? The article will argue that political and sociocultural variables account for the difference. More specifically, the article demonstrates that the experience of both ethno-nationalist and jihadist political violence has affected party systems and cultural frames differently, hence providing distinct sets of political opportunities for victims’ associations to carry out their lobbying strategies.     

Restoring Choice: The Relationship Between Offense Seriousness,Intervening Time,and Victims’ Responses to the Offer of Restorative Interventions

This study investigates victims’ responses to the offer of involvement in a restorative intervention. It tests the hypotheses that victims’ choices are related to the seriousness of the offense (H1), and that this relationship is moderated by how long after the offense the restorative intervention is offered (H2). A cross-sectional, between-subjects design was used, drawing on data from 256 offenses collected for operational purposes by a restorative justice service. Victims of medium-seriousness offenses were most likely to choose indirect and direct reparation. Intervening time moderated the relationship between seriousness and victim choice: victims of low-seriousness offenses became more likely to choose community reparation with time, victims of medium-seriousness offenses became less likely to choose direct or indirect reparation, and there was no change with time for victims of the most serious offenses. These results suggest nonlinear relationships between seriousness, intervening time, and victim choice. Although more complex and in different directions than anticipated, they lend some support to both hypotheses. The study highlights qualitative differences between types of restorative interventions, points to a significant disparity between victims’ choices and processes the literature suggests are of most benefit, and raises questions regarding when and how restorative interventions should be offered.     

Comparison of Impact of Procedural Justice and Outcome on Victim Satisfaction: Evidence From Victims’ Experience With Registration of Property Crimes in India

Crime victim–police interface and registration of crime are the early and fundamental interactions in the criminal justice system. The process of lodging a complaint is marked by the pain of victimization, sharing of information, and expectation of quick remedial action from the police. The nature and quality of experience of the victim and outcomes impact the level of satisfaction with services of police. Through a survey of victims of property crimes, in different areas of a state in India, the author examines the impact of procedural justice and outcomes on victim satisfaction. The study illuminates the outcome oriented expectations of the victim, and the unique dynamics of victim–police interaction, which strains the legal ethical framework of the criminal justice system.