Victims of crime are being betrayed by a liberal intelligentsia that focuses on the rights of offenders rather than those they have attacked, the victim’s champion says today.
Louise Casey criticises the pressure groups that appear always to be on the side of the criminal while giving much less thought to people whose lives have been destroyed by offenders.
She said that if doctors and lawyers were themselves the victims of serious crime, a campaign group similar to the human rights group Liberty would be set up to support them.
She tells The Times: “I see that a lot of victims are not wealthy. They don’t have brothers that are barristers, they don’t have friends that are journalists and they struggle to get their voice heard. I just don’t think that is morally right.”
The attack by Miss Casey, the Government-appointed independent advocate for victims and witnesses, will infuriate liberals who have always had reservations about her approach towards punishment, trial by jury and tackling antisocial behaviour.
Advertisement
Next week, in a report on how victims of murder and manslaughter are treated by the justice system, Miss Casey will make a series of recommendations for change. Among the key points will be the introduction of a legal requirement for the bodies of murder and manslaughter victims to be returned to their families within a month.
She also wants the families to be able to display a photograph of their loved one when statements on the impact of the crime are read before sentencing.
“It is about saying this is all about the victim, it is not just about the person in the dock,” Miss Casey says. She said she hoped that the row over the cross-examination of Milly Dowler’s parents would prove to be a turning point for victims. Their experience typified the powerlessness of victims.
She contrasts the definite “rights” which she says are rightly given to accused people with the vague codes and unenforceable charters for victims.
Miss Casey also risks incurring the wrath of liberals by questioning whether the right to trial by jury for many lesser crimes should be ended. She said that clogging up the Crown Court with minor offences results in delays of up to 18 months before a murder trial can be heard and prolongs the suffering of victims’ families.