Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.31299/ksi.26.1.2
Victim Needs and Satisfaction with Support Provided by Victim and Witness Support Departments
Nikica Hamer Vidmar
orcid.org/0000-0001-5083-2794
; Ministarstvo pravosuđa RH, Služba za podršku žrtvama i svjedocima
Martina Bajto
; Ministarstvo pravosuđa RH, Služba za podršku žrtvama i svjedocima
Sažetak
Victim and Witness Support Departments established at county courts provide emotional and practical support, information on rights and technical information and refer victims, witnesses, injured parties and persons accompanying them to other specialized institutions and organizations depending on their needs. The aim of the survey was to explore ways in which victims and witnesses were informed about the available support, reasons and motives for seeking support from Victim and Witness Support Departments, analyse how victims and witnesses felt before, during and after their testimony, gain insight into their experience of testifying in court, explore their needs for support and effectiveness of the support they had received by the Victim and Witness Support Departments. The survey was conducted on a convenience sample (N = 101) covering victims, witnesses, injured parties and accompanying persons who had previously received support from the Victim and Witness Support Departments. The questionnaire, designed for the purpose of this survey, was completed by the respondents after the end of the court hearing. The findings have shown that victims, witnesses and injured parties were usually informed about the Victim and Witness Support Departments through the court subpoena, but most of them contacted the support staff at the court when the support staff and volunteers approached them on their own initiative. After receiving the court subpoena and before giving the testimony, they expressed feelings of anxiety, nervousness, fear and confusion. Many of them stated that they were feeling upset during the testimony, as if they were going through the event they had witnessed over again and could not wait for the testimony to end. After the testimony they usually expressed a feeling of relief. They said that the following forms of support provided by the Victim and Witness Support Departments proved to be most beneficial: provision of information, separate waiting area (away from other parties before the testimony), emotional support and accompaniment of the support staff / volunteers in the courtroom during the testimony. They stated that they were very satisfied with the support provided by the support department and that they would recommend contacting the department to other people who were in a similar situation.
Ključne riječi
victim and witness support; court testimony; victim needs; victim reactions
Hrčak ID:
207533
URI
Datum izdavanja:
30.10.2018.
Posjeta: 2.829 *