Support for Incorporating an Enhanced Response to Victims as a Priority in Daily Law Enforcement Operations

                                                          Submitted by: Victim Services Committee

                                                                               VSC.016.a08

WHEREAS, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, with support and funding from the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, has developed, field tested and validated prior to its national release the "Enhancing Law Enforcement Response to Crime Victims: a 21st Century Strategy"; and

WHEREAS, the 1999 "What Do Victims Want?" National Summit identified the seven critical needs of all victims: safety, support, information, access, continuity, voice and justice; and

WHEREAS, the "Enhancing Law Enforcement Response to Crime Victims: a 21st Century Strategy" focuses on all victims of all crimes, which was developed around four core areas: leadership, training, performance monitoring and partnering; and

WHEREAS, three police departments served as pilot sites to develop and field test the new strategy and eight law enforcement agencies sites implement and validated the strategy across a broader field of law enforcement; and

WHEREAS, an enhanced response to crime victims involves treating all victims and their families with empathy, compassion and respect in such a way as to maximize their feelings of safety and security; providing victims with access to information and referrals for assistance; informing victims about what to expect as their cases move forward; avoiding victim blaming; and helping victims identify risk factors that could lead to re victimization; and

WHEREAS, an Enhancing Law Enforcement Response to Victims: The Strategy Package (available on the IACP website:: www.theiacp.org)which includes the Strategy, an operational friendly Implementation Guide and a Resource Toolkit, has been developed and is available to all law enforcement agencies free of charge; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED that the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) duly assembled at its 115th Annual Conference in San Diego, California, hereby calls upon every chief of police to incorporate into their organization's daily operations an improved victim response philosophy outlined in the "Enhancing Law Enforcement Response to Crime Victims: a 21st Century Strategy."