Victims of crime, the Council of Europe recommends greater protection

The new text, made up of 26 articles, updates and replaces the previous Recommendation of 2006. Among the reasons for the intervention of the Committee of Ministers, that of harmonizing the law of States and encouraging cooperation between them, in particular when it comes to assisting victims of terrorism or other forms of transnational crime.

The recommendation adopts a holistic approach to the rights of the victim, with a view to developing and expanding their protection in the context of procedural law, and not only within the process but also before, after and independently of it.

The wish of the Committee of Ministers is to generate a cultural change, sensitizing Justice and the process to the needs of the victims, always paying attention to balancing the rights of the victims with those of the person accused of a crime.

The text expands the notion of the victim of the crime to injured parties including family members of the person who died as a result of the crime.

Member States will have to ensure that the measures envisaged by the Recommendation are applied without discrimination of sex, gender, race, colour, language, religion, political affiliation, opinion, nationality, and particularly vulnerable victims will have to benefit from measures adapted to their situation.

The best interest of the child is a primary consideration when the victim of the crime is a child. The barriers that prevent victims’ access to civil and criminal justice must be removed, ensuring the right to report, to complete information on the procedure, to be listened to and protected.

From the first approach with the competent Authority, communication with the victims will have to take on a simple and accessible languagewhich takes into account the characteristics of the person, the degree of knowledge of the language, age, maturity, emotional and intellectual capacity, level of education, any disability, possibly allowing the same to be accompanied by another person , at the first meeting with the competent authority.

Article 6 of the Recommendation states the minimum necessary information content to be given to the injured party from the outset. The recognition of the right to file a complaint with all the necessary guarantees and precautions is followed by the right to receive updates on the state of the proceedings, including, for example, the decision to proceed or not with the investigation, the time and place of the trial, the allegations raised against the defendant, the final decision.

States will have to communicate promptly, or at least at the request of the victim, if the accused remains subject to precautionary measures, if he is tried, if he has been convicted, and above all if he has been released from prison or has escaped.

Among the significant passages of the text approved by the Committee of Ministers, that of revising the national legislations ensuring that the proof of the trial is given on the initiative of the victim and is not reduced instead to the obligation for the same to testify.

Strengthened the right to be heard: States will have to ensure thehearing of the injured party on all decisions that could have a material impact on your interests.

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Victims participating in trials should come reimbursed for the expenses incurred for their active participation in the proceedings or at least for the expenses they are obliged to bear, such as those for participating in the taking of evidence as witnesses.

Even the compensation must be protected as a real right of the victim. States should ensure that in the course of criminal proceedings, injured parties are entitled to a decision on compensation from the offender within a reasonable time. When the request for compensation in the criminal trial is incompatible with the national law, the Member States should ensure alternative avenues through other procedures capable of ensuring the right to compensation.

Instruments that encourage the injurer to compensate the victims must be encouraged, and if during the criminal trial the victim prefers to appeal to the civil judge to obtain a compensation decision, he must be able to exercise this choice.

Also relevant is the invitation to the States to introduce a mechanism of indemnityindependent of criminal proceedings, at least for victims of intentional and violent crimes, including sexual violence.

Claims for compensation in this case should be made free of charge and compensation should be awarded without delay, and at a fair level, taking into account the costs of treatment and rehabilitation in the event of physical or mental injury, loss of income, expenses funeral arrangements and loss of support for the dependents of the deceased victim.

The state compensation mechanism could operate on a subsidiary basis, where there is no payment by the offender, insurance or health and social services. States are even encouraged to prepay before the final decision on state compensation is made, in cases where the victim has an emergency situation.

With a view to guaranteeing effective compensation for the damage suffered as a result of a crime, the Recommendation invites the Member States to favor insurance coverage for damage caused by crime, and to discourage the principle according to which policies do not protect against acts of terrorism or intentional crime, allowing insurance companies, where appropriate, the right to retaliate against the perpetrator.

Precise indications also on the chapter of restorative justice, which should be guaranteed by States with safe and effective services, through bodies in line with the criteria of the Recommendation (2018)8 of the Committee of Ministers, which know how to take due account of the needs and interests of the victims, and ensure the voluntariness of the participation of the parties.

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