NCJ Number
119623
Date Published
1989
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Legislative concern about crime victims has inspired several provisions of Portuguese law. A distinctive feature of the system is that victims may be granted an active role in the proceedings, restitution by the offender is mandatorily ordered by the sentencing court, and victims can receive part of the wages of their imprisoned offenders.
Abstract
However, the legislative goal of involving victims more actively in criminal proceedings does not seem to have been reached. Consequently, assistance to crime victims is now recognized as requiring official intervention. Portugal does not yet have a national system of crime statistics distinct from judicial statistics, however, the government has been working on a program for collecting data on crimes reported or otherwise known to the authorities. Some signs that State intervention is beginning to receive the attention of politicians is that statements have been issued by the Minister of Justice that the public powers should assume a more active role in organizing and providing victim assistance. A bill has been presented to Parliament on this subject. Bibliography