The first section provides a philosophical basis for the concept of victim compensation and a historical perspective to its development nationally and in West Virginia. The following section reviews incidence, including the number of claims made under the West Virginia Crime Reparations Act of 1981 and the number approved and denied, the reasons for approval and denial. Individuals eligible and ineligible for the program, attitudes of those affected by the program, and program strengths and weaknesses are also described. In the next section, the West Virginia law is compared with similar legislation in the states of Delaware, Florida, New York, Ohio, and Washington. The final section analyzes the 1981 Act with regard to equity, predictability, adequacy, adaptability, efficiency and cost of administration, and sufficiency and consistency of financing arrangements. The report makes a number of recommendations designed to improve the effectiveness of the law. To increase public awareness of the existence of the Crime Victims Reparation Act, the brochures (and posters) mentioned in the Act should also be distributed to hospital emergency rooms, prosecutor and defender offices, and social services agencies. Funds from the Crime Victims Reparation Fund should be used for printing and distributing costs. Public service announcements and press releases should appear in the media monthly for 1 to 2 years to inform the public that the program exists, who is eligible, and how to file a claim. To improve accountability to the people of West Virginia, the legislature should establish a citizen advisory board to the court of claims. Tables, appendixes, and a bibliography are supplied.