victim

NCVC hosted an online webinar focused on Providing Trauma-Informed Death Notifications. In this training, Staci Beers, Victim Services Coordinator, FBI, presented best practices to perform a trauma-informed and compassionate approach to death notification and possible crisis reactions by survivors. This four-hour training included; best strategies to give compassionate and trauma-informed death notifications, interactive scenarios, and information on different referrals and services in Cleveland, Ohio.

This training initially was developed for the Ohio-N PSN site who was experiencing issues with victim and witness intimidation. This training provided law enforcement with an overview of victim-witness intimidation and provide a victim-centered approach to interviewing and responding to witnesses. Through conversation with other sites, hearing their issues with victim/witness intimidation, NCVC decided to conduct a national training on Trauma-Informed Law Enforcement Strategies for Combating Victim, Witness, and Community Intimidation and Retaliation.

Join the International Association of Chiefs of Police for their upcoming “Interactions with the Media” webinar on August 4, 2020 at 11:00 a.m. ET. This webinar will address how police departments can work with the media to deliver victim-centered and trauma-informed messaging to the community.

During this session, Chief Fred Fletcher (ret.) from the Chattanooga, Tennessee Police Department will discuss how police departments can work with the media to deliver victim-centered and trauma-informed messaging to the community, while also using the media to highlight agency successes around responding to crimes of domestic and sexual violence.

The Ohio-N PSN site is experiencing issues with victim and witness intimidation and wants to host an initial meeting in late-February. We have confirmed February 21st at the training date with a training length of 90 minutes. The initial training will provide law enforcement with an overview of victim-witness intimidation and provide a victim-centered approach to interviewing and responding to witnesses. Further, the site requested an additional training later in the year in which these topics will be discussed in significant detail over a one to two day training.

As part of the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys’ Capital Litigation Improvement Project webinar series, Randy Udelman of the Arizona Crime Victim Rights Law Group presented on victim counsel coordination. Mr. Udelman outlined ways in which victim counsel facilitates the criminal process by interfacing between victim families. In addition, Mr. Udelman offered several sample hypothetical cases based on real facts—illustrating how to effectively meet victim needs in capital case prosecution. Mr. Udelman also answered several questions from the attendees at the end of the presentation.