This file is provided for reference purposes only. It was current when produced, but is no longer maintained and may now be outdated. Please select www.ovc.gov to access current information.
OVC RESOURCE CENTER AND OTHER SERVICES VICTIMS' RESOURCES IN THE INFORMATION AGE |
The development of new information technologies - most notably the growth of the Internet - has dramatically changed the way in which information on crime victims' issues is being made available to researchers, advocates, and practitioners. As recently as a dozen years ago, the availability of this information was greatly limited by the lack of centralized collection and distribution. Moreover, the form of the information was generally limited to paper documents that required considerable effort to locate and obtain. Today, however, victims and victim-service providers can instantly access an enormous store of information specific to the entire range of their personal and professional concerns - information that includes statistics; model programs and protocols; grant funding sources, and local, State, and national referrals to professional organizations in the victim-serving community. Importantly, this information is available wherever and whenever it is needed - in homes, shelters, and offices; in the middle of a trial or in the middle of the night. For victims and victim-service providers, this new information access begins with the Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center, and the National Criminal Justice Reference Service.
Established in accordance with recommendations of the 1982 President's
Task Force on Victims of Crime, the United States Department of
Justice's Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) advocates for the
fair treatment of victims at the national level, and serves as
the "Federal focal point" for issues that affect victims
of crime throughout the United States. OVC's information clearinghouse,
the Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center (OVCRC), a component
of the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS), is
on the forefront of these new information technologies, and is
using them aggressively to deliver timely and relevant information
to the victim-serving community. Since coming "online"
in 1994, NCJRS and OVCRC have developed a variety of online services
to benefit the victim assistance professional - services that
include an Internet Gopher site; World Wide Web page; Anonymous
FTP site; Justice Information (JUST INFO) Electronic Newsletter;
E-Mail Information and Help Line; and the NCJRS Bulletin Board
System (NCJRS*BBS). Together with other electronic access
features - including telephone and online document ordering, and
fax-on-demand - NCJRS and OVCRC have truly made a "quantum
leap" forward in fulfilling their mission of "bringing
the right information to the right people...right now."
ACCESSING NCJRS AND OVCRC ONLINE
NCJRS Online can be accessed in the following ways:
NCJRS INTERNET GOPHER SITE
The site contains text of information from each Office
of Justice Programs (OJP) agency, the Office of National Drug
Control Policy, and NCJRS component clearinghouses. Includes agency
overviews, press releases, public announcements, conferences,
previews of new products and publications, direct links to other
criminal and juvenile justice resources on the Internet, and direct
connections to the Partnerships Against Violence
NETwork (PAVNET). The gopher address is <ncjrs.gov:71>.
NCJRS WORLD WIDE WEB HOMEPAGE
The homepage provides a graphical interface (a connection that displays graphics or illustrations, as well as text) to NCJRS information, as well as links to other criminal justice resources from around the world. The NCJRS Web page provides information about NCJRS and OJP agencies; grant-funding opportunities; previews of selected new publications; key-word searching of NCJRS publications; the current NCJRS Catalog; a topical index; and direct connections to the NCJRS Gopher site and Bulletin Board System, as well as PAVNET. The address for the NCJRS Homepage is <http://www.ncjrs.gov>.
NCJRS ANONYMOUS FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL (FTP)
The NCJRS Anonymous FTP site allows users to quickly access and download large, complex NCJRS publications and software, whether they are in ASCII text or a binary document. These documents may include annual OJP agency program plans, which contain grant funding information. The Anonymous FTP address is <ncjrs.gov/pub/ncjrs>.
JUSTICE INFORMATION (JUST INFO) ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER
This free, online newsletter is distributed to your Internet e-mail address on the 1st and 15th of each month. JUST INFO contains information concerning a wide variety of subjects, including news from all Office of Justice Programs (OJP) agencies and the Office of National Drug Control Policy; criminal justice in the news; news of international criminal justice; criminal justice resources on the Internet; Federal legislation updates; criminal justice funding and program information, and announcements about new NCJRS products and services. To subscribe, send an e-mail to <listproc@ncjrs.gov>. Further instructions will be automatically forwarded.
E-MAIL: INFORMATION AND HELP
First time users can send an e-mail message to this address: <look@ncjrs.gov>. The user will automatically receive a reply outlining the services of NCJRS. User requiring technical assistance or having specific questions on criminal and juvenile justice topics can send an e-mail to <askncjrs@ncjrs.gov>.
NCJRS BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEM (NCJRS*BBS)
NCJRS*BBS is a free 24-hour electronic service accessible through a personal computer and a modem (now also available through the Internet). NCJRS*BBS serves as the primary online conduit for news and announcements from NCJRS, the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). Agency "menus" contained on the system provide agency and mission descriptions; product and publications lists; full texts of documents and reports; conference, workshop, and seminar schedules; program summaries; applications for grant funding opportunities; grant award summaries and training and technical assistance information. In addition to providing up-to-date criminal justice information, NCJRS*BBS serves as an interactive network for information sharing among criminal justice professionals. NCJRS collects, reports, and evaluates information from numerous sources, and users supply information on their vital findings. Information is also generated online, as users comment on resources, exchange ideas, ask questions, and provide answers. Users with Internet access may Telnet to <bbs.ncjrs.gov>. Users without Internet access may direct dial through their modem: (301) 738-8895. Modems should be set at 9600 baud and 8-N-1. A Graphical User Interface (GUI) is available for the NCJRS*BBS for Windows users. The necessary file -- guizip.exe -- is available via the NCJRS*BBS.
PARTNERSHIPS AGAINST VIOLENCE NETWORK (PAVNET)
PAVNET Online is a searchable database containing information
about hundreds of promising programs and resources, providing
users with key contacts; program types; target populations; location;
project startup date; evaluation information; annual budget; sources
of funding, and program description. Users may either go directly
to the site at <gopher pavnet.esusda.gov>, access
it through the NCJRS Gopher site at <ncjrs.gov:71>
(look under the menu selection "Other Criminal and Juvenile
Justice Resources"), or access it through the NCJRS/Justice
Information Center home page on the World Wide Web, located at
<http://www.ncjrs.gov>.
OTHER NCJRS ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICES
FAX-ON-DEMAND
NCJRS has established a "fax-on-demand" service which allows the user to obtain copies of selected NCJRS documents directly through their own fax machine, using a toll-free telephone number. To access the fax-on-demand menu, simply call 1-800-851-3420, and follow the prompts.
CD-ROM
Users with CD-ROM capability can also obtain the NCJRS Document
Data Base on CD-ROM. This disc features citations and abstracts
of more than 130,000 criminal justice books, research reports,
journal articles, government documents, program descriptions,
program evaluations, and training manuals contained in the NCJRS
Research and Information Center library collection. The disc also
contains search software that supports retrieval using any combination
of words to search individual fields or all fields globally. The
disc can be searched using "free text" methods, or in
combination with the National Criminal Justice Thesaurus. Details
are available by calling NCJRS at (800) 851-3420.
VICTIM-RELATED INTERNET SITES
Crime victims and victim service providers have witnessed a remarkable
growth in the amount of information available to them, through
the continued development of the Internet -- especially the World
Wide Web. Now, victim-serving agencies and advocacy organizations
have the ability to reach around the corner or around the world
with information about new issues, services, and promising practices
designed to improve the welfare of victims of all types of crime.
In an effort to present the most comprehensive and timely information
available through this vast medium, the Office for Victims of
Crime has substantially revised its World Wide Web home page.
OVC encourages crime victims and victim service providers alike
to visit this exciting new resource, located at <http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/>.
Many other agencies and organizations are now providing victim-related
information through the World Wide Web. The following is a list
of sites on the Web that contain information on selected crime
victimization topics. Please note that this list is intended only
to provide a sample of available resources, and does not constitute
an endorsement of opinions, resources, or statements made therein.
GENERAL INFORMATION RESOURCES
National Criminal Justice Reference Service/Justice Information Center http://www.ncjrs.gov
National Organization for Victim Assistance http://www.try-nova.org/
National Victim Centerhttp://www.ncvc.org
Office for Victims of Crime http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/
CHILD ABUSE
American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law http://www.abanet.org/child/
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children http://www.apsac.org/mc/page.do
Child Abuse Prevention Network http://child.cornell.edu
National Children's Advocacy Center http://www.nncac.org/
National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information
DOMESTIC AND FAMILY VIOLENCE
Domestic Abuse Page of the Nashville Police Department http://www.nashville.net/~police/abuse/index.html
Family Violence Prevention Fund http://www.fvpf.org/fund/index.html
Minnesota Higher Education Center Against Violence and Abuse http://www.mincava.umn.edu/
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence http://www.webmerchants.com/ncadv/default.htm
National Domestic Violence Hotline http://www.justice.gov/ovw/
Violence Against Women Office (U.S. Department of Justice) http://www.justice.gov/vawo/
DRUNK DRIVING
MADD http://www.madd.org/home.aspx
FRAUD
National Fraud Information Center http://www.fraud.org
United States Postal Inspection Service http://www.usps.com/websites/depart/inspect/welcome.htm
MISSING CHILDREN
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children http://www.missingkids.org
RAPE AND SEXUAL ABUSE
National Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Sexual Assault Information Page
SURVIVOR RESOURCES
David Baldwin's Trauma Information Page http://www.trauma-pages.com/
Parents of Murdered Children http://www.pomc.com/
AVAILABLE FREE FROM OVC RESOURCE CENTER |
| Child Sexual Exploitation: Improving Investigations and Protecting Victims -- A Blueprint for Action | NCJ 153527 |
| Child Victimizers and Their Victims: BJS Special Report | NCJ 158625 |
| Childhood Victimization and Risk for Alcohol and Drug Arrests | FS 108 |
| Parental Kidnapping | FS 9534 |
| Obstacles to the Recovery and Return of Parentally Abducted Children | NCJ 143458 |
| Victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse: Later Criminal Consequences | NCJ 151525 |
| A Coordinated Approach to Reducing Family Violence: Conference Highlights | NCJ 155184 |
| The Criminal Justice and Community Response to Rape | NCJ 148064 |
| Managing Adult Sex Offenders in the Community -- A Containment Approach | NCJ 163387 |
| Domestic Violence, Stalking, and Antistalking Legislation: Annual Report to Congress | NCJ 160943 |
| Regional Seminar Series on Developing and Implementing Antistalking Codes | NCJ 156836 |
| Threat Assessment: An Approach to Prevent Targeted Violence | NCJ 155000 |
| Female Victims of Violent Crime | NCJ 162602 |
| Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey | NCJ 154348 |
| Violent Families and Youth Violence | FS 9421 |
| Assessing the Exposure of Urban Youth to Violence | FS 159 |
| Criminal Victimization 1994: National Crime Victimization Survey | NCJ 158022 |
| Extent and Costs of Crime Victimization: A New Look | FS 131 |
| Fraud Victimization: The Extent, the Targets, the Effects | FS 75 |
| Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 1996 Update on Violence | NCJ 159107 |
| Transferring Serious Juvenile Offenders to Adult Courts | NCJ 161840 |
| Prison Sentences and Time Served for Violence | NCJ 153858 |
| Sex Offenses and Offenders | NCJ 163392 |
| Violence and Theft in the Workplace | NCJ 148199 |
| Young Black Male Victims | NCJ 147004 |
| Balanced and Restorative Justice Project | FS 9642 |
| Preventing Gang- and Drug-Related Witness Intimidation | NCJ 163067 |
| Revictimization: Reducing the Heat on Hot Victims | NCJ 162951 |
| State Crime Victim Compensation and Assistance Grant Programs Fact Sheet | FS 80 |
| Stopping Hate Crime: A Case History From the Sacramento Police Department | FS 161 |
| Victim Assistance Programs: Whom They Service, What They Offer | FS 84 |
TRAINING CURRICULA AVAILABLE FREE
FROM OVC RESOURCE CENTER
| Death Notification: Breaking the Bad News with Concern for the Professional and Compassion for the Survivor -- Law Enforcement | NCJ 162363 |
| HIV/AIDS and Victim Services: A Critical Concern for the 90's | NCJ 161415 |
| Improving the Police Response to Domestic Elder Abuse (Instructor) | NCJ 147558 |
| Improving the Police Response to Domestic Elder Abuse (Participant) | NCJ 148831 |
| National Bias Crimes Training for Law Enforcement and Victim Assistance Professionals (Instructor) | NCJ 155130 |
| National Bias Crimes Training for Law Enforcement and Victim Assistance Professionals (Participant) | NCJ 155179 |
| Trauma, Death and Death Notification: Professional Counselors and Victim Advocates | NCJ 162360 |
| Victim Empowerment -- Bridging the Systems -- Mental Health and Victim Service Providers | NCJ 161862 |
VIDEOTAPES AVAILABLE FREE FROM OVC RESOURCE CENTER
| After the Robbery: Crisis to Resolution (Financial Institutions) | NCJ 162842 |
| Crime Victim Compensation: A Good Place to Start | NCJ 162359 |
To order up to 5 reference documents free of charge from the U.S. Department of Justice, either call the Office for Victims of Crime Resource Center at (800) 627-6872, or write to: NCJRS, User Services, Box 6000, Rockville, MD 20849-6000. Orders of 6 or more documents will be assessed shipping and handling charges. To become a registered user of NCJRS, please call the above toll-free number and request an NCJRS registration form. Note that many of the documents listed above are available online from the NCJRS/Justice Information Center home page at <http://www.ncjrs.gov>.
The information on this page is archived and provided for reference purposes only.