Child Victim Impact Statement: Fill & Download for Free

When I was about 12 and finally learning how to wholly grasp events going on around me, my mom and aunt ushered my self, my siblings, and cousins out of our little house. We were just going to go out for ice cream, as I had just delivered the hardest blow any parent could ever receive. I told them I was touched. Although, we never got ice cream that day. Instead I was 'treated' to cameras and strangers that gave me soda and other 'comfort foods'. The Investigators had stopped my mom in her tracks. They needed us to come down to make a report. That day played out as if it was in slow motion and thinking back it feels raw and weird. That morning I walked out of my parents bedroom disgusted and wanting to puke. I had told my dad I wasn't alone, HE did it to my siblings, too. My dad pulled each of us in individually and afterwards solemnly followed behind me, and quietly sat on the couch and cried. I remember feeling like I failed my family and my siblings, like it was my fault that my dad was crying. This was the first time I had ever seen him cry. I will never forget that. That evening the cops came and took my grandfather away. From the snippets I could hear of my mom and aunts conversation, they were taking him to do a lie detector test. The news was a hit to the guts he PASSED. He didn't think anything he had done to any of us was wrong. The next morning, this vile diabetic man left his gun and medication on his bed, and walked a little over two miles to turn himself in.I don't think any amount of therapy will wash my brain of the 7 years of abuse I endured from him, but there's definitely been progress. After my grandfather was sentenced (he took a plea deal that allowed us kids to avoid being in court with him), the dam broke. There were no more skeletons in the closet. News came that he had molested many people over the duration of his life. I was told I was a hero, and I'll never forget that either. Thanks for listening. My grandfather was sentenced to life in prison with possibility of parole after 10 years. That 10 years hits next year, and I pray everyday that he just passes on so I no longer have to live with this burden.ETA UPDATE: I actually drove over 1,200 miles to Vegas for his parole hearing this past March! The night before hand, Governor Sisolak had an emergency meeting about closing down businesses across Nevada. Unfortunately I was not able to speak to any board in person at all. They actually tried to send us away and last minute I yelled “but I'm his victim”. I came prepared with a victim impact statement(VIS) and they refused to take that as well. Fortunately or unfortunately I had to read my VIS to one board member over the phone, in my vehicle, while other workers from the parole place stood outside.I have two more years before he can try for parole again. I wish he would have get sentenced to death.

I used to write presentence investigation reports.This is a report the judge uses to help him/her sentence an offender. It has all kinds of information in it and much of it is highly personal to the offender.Writing one of these is like putting a human puzzle together. You do research about their past and talk to people who know them. You gather facts and write a report. This helps the judge and attorneys figure out who this person really is.The report can help or hurt an offender and more often than not, the judge usually listens to what the investigator has to say about what an appropriate sentence is.I am very good at getting people to trust me. The more comfortable they feel with me, the more information they give. This isn’t always bad. Sometimes it brings to light mitigating circumstances which may have led someone to commit a crime.Prior behavior is the best predictor of future behavior.Anyway to my story…I used to write these reports on very serious offenses committed by very disturbed offenders.I was interviewing this hard core gang member and it took me hours to break him into giving me even a little bit of information. He had murdered another young man (also gang affiliated) in some kind of drug turf war. He also denied he did it.I knew I had gained some trust and became empathic to him. I talked about how his providing me information could very well help the judge understand him better and possibly give him less time.When we spoke about his father, he broke down. He talked about what a horrible alcoholic he was which led to beatings of him as a child.On the day of sentencing, everyone was there. News crews, reporters, family members etc.Normally POs who write these reports don’t say much in open court. The report speaks for itself. I usually sit behind the county attorney quietly. I was kitty corner from this killer.On this day the Judge asked the attorneys if they were satisfied with my report. Meaning no grammatical errors or inaccuracies. They said they were.After the victim impact statements, it was time for him to be sentenced. I’m not exaggerating when I say this fella stood cocky and did not show an ounce of remorse.The judge asked him to rise. He sentenced him to the maximum sentence allowed by law. 25 years. This is what I recommended.After the victim’s family was told to be quiet, this killer turns around, holds his arm up, takes his hand and forms the shape of a gun. He’s pointing it at me and moving forward. He yells at the top of his lungs,“You! You fucking PO bitch! You’re a snake!”Needless to say, his attorneys grabbed him quickly as the deputies ascended on him. I was in complete shock.When I was escorted out of the courtroom I was indeed thinking, “I cannot believe that just happened!”The headline in the newspaper the following morning read, “Gang member Calls PO a Snake”. Thanks news media. My supervisor was steaming. They had some deal with local media not to ever mention POs due to safety reasons.After the shock wore off, I was escorted everywhere I went for the next two weeks.

Not sure why I was A2A as I have no experience with the matter, however, a quick Google search yields this: Victim Impact StatementsFrom that link:Victim impact statements are written or oral information from crime victims, in their own words, about how a crime has affected them. All 50 states allow victim impact statements at some phase of the sentencing process. Most states permit them at parole hearings, and victim impact information is generally included in the pre-sentencing report presented to the judge.Purpose: The purpose of victim impact statements is to allow crime victims, during the decision-making process on sentencing or parole, to describe to the court or parole board the impact of the crime. A judge may use information from these statements to help determine an offender's sentence; a parole board may use such information to help decide whether to grant a parole and what conditions to impose in releasing an offender. A few states allow victim impact information to be introduced at bail, pre-trial release, or plea bargain hearings.Victim impact statements may provide information about damage to victims that would otherwise have been unavailable to courts or parole boards. Victims are often not called to testify in court, and if they testify, they must respond to narrow, specific questions. Victim impact statements are often the victims' only opportunity to participate in the criminal justice process or to confront the offenders who have harmed them. Many victims report that making such statements improves their satisfaction with the criminal justice process and helps them recover from the crime.Contents: Victim impact statements may include descriptions of: Physical damage caused by the crime. Emotional damage caused by the crime. Financial costs to the victim from the crime. Medical or psychological treatments required by the victim or his or her family. The need for restitution (court-ordered funds that the offender pays the victim for crime-related expenses). The victim's views on the crime or the offender (in some states). The victim's views on an appropriate sentence (in some states).Other Important Facts: Statement Formats: Most states allow victims to present oral or written statements. Some states allow victims to record impact statements on videotape, audiotape, or other electronic means, particularly for use at parole hearings. In some states, child victims may submit drawings to describe how the crime affected them. Role in Deliberations: Some states require judges or parole boards to consider victim impact statements in their deliberations. Others simply allow victims to make statements with no additional requirement for judges or parole boards. Defendants' Rights: Defendants are usually allowed to challenge the accuracy of the facts presented in victim impact statements.