Title: NVAA Learning Activity: Chapter 2: The Criminal Justice System Continuum Series: Training Manual Author: Office for Victims of Crime and National Victim Assistance Academy Published: June 2002 Subject: organizational leadership 3 pages 5,081 bytes ---------------------------- Figures, charts, forms, and tables are not included in this ASCII plain-text file. To view this document in its entirety, download the Adobe Acrobat graphic file available from this Web site. ---------------------------- NVAA Learning Activity Chapter 2: The Criminal Justice System Continuum INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES Key Concepts/Objectives to Emphasize in Instruction and Learning Activities: 1. Key characteristics of the American judicial system (2.1-2) and the state court system. (2.1-2 to 2.1-7) 2. Core victims' rights and services and who is responsible for implementation. (2.2-2 to 2.2-17) 3. Current status of victims' rights within the criminal justice system. (2.2-19 to 2.2-30) Objectives: 1. Identify victims' core rights in a criminal justice case scenario. 2. Describe which agency within the criminal justice system is responsible for implementing those core rights and what implementation entails. Description of Activity and Faculty Guidelines: Following a lecture that highlights the key concepts/objectives, the instructor divides students into groups of ten. Each group receives the case scenario and student worksheet, and each group facilitator asks for a student volunteer to read the case scenario out loud. The groups are instructed to utilize the student worksheet and, as a group, identify the six core rights of victims that should be implemented in this case: o Notification and information. o Protection. o Participation/victim impact statements. o Restitution and other legal/financial obligations. o Assistance with victim compensation. o Provision of information/referrals to supportive services. The students are then instructed to identify which agency is responsible for implementing these core rights, with a brief description of what "implementation" entails. Can Be Utilized As: _____ Individual Activity __X__ Small Group Activity _____ Large Group Activity Anticipated Amount of Time Required: 20 Minutes o 03 minutes for group division. o 02 minutes to read the case scenario. o 15 minutes to identify core rights and responsibility for implementation. RESOURCES NEEDED (Please check all that apply:) _____ Tear sheets and felt pens _____ VCR/monitor _____ Overhead projector and screen/LCD and laptop _____ Blank overhead transparencies and overhead pens _____ Masking tape _____ Index cards __X__ Individual or group worksheets __X__ Timer _____ Other (please describe): ---------------------------- STUDENT WORKSHEET CASE SCENARIO Edith is a 68-year-old widow who lives on a small farm just outside of town with her 47-year-old son Charles, who has several developmental and other disabilities (including mental retardation and epilepsy). For the past two years, Charles has been attending a workshop where he attaches zippers and pulls to backpacks in return for a small stipend. Edith and Charles recently befriended Daniel, the new bus driver for the sheltered workshop, who has joined them for dinner on several occasions. When Edith noticed that small things started disappearing from her farm house- -including a set of keys and her mother's gold earrings--she just thought she was being forgetful. Late one Saturday night, Edith was sleeping in her reclining chair when something slammed down on her head. That's all she remembered prior to waking up Sunday morning, bloodied and bruised, to a ransacked home. She noticed that everything valuable (TV, VCR, jewelry) was missing as she wandered from room to room calling out Charles's name. She found him lying face down in the bathroom, barely breathing, following what she guessed was a seizure. She quickly gave Charles his medicine and called 911. Both Edith and Charles were taken to the hospital where they were treated and kept overnight for observation. Three days later, Edith was amazed to learn the local sheriff had arrested Daniel for home invasion, burglary, assault, and attempted murder. Daniel had a lengthy record of burglaries to support his methamphetamine habit. 1. As this case proceeds through the criminal justice system, what are the core rights of Edith and Charles? 2. Who is responsible for implementing each core right? (refer to the attached student worksheet) 3. Are there any shared responsibilities across agencies? (refer to the attached student worksheet) ---------------------------- STUDENT WORKSHEET: CORE VICTIMS' RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITY FOR IMPLEMENTATION is not included in this ASCII plain-text file. To view this document in its entirety, download the Adobe Acrobat graphic file available from this Web site.