Public Safety

A Guide Through a Nightmare

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Every violent crime has a perpetrator and a victim. And while we often see the work prosecutors do bringing the offenders to justice, we get little exposure to the efforts a team of specialists makes to help those whose lives have been turned upside down.

They’re called victim advocates, and they provided a variety of emotional or material support to more than 14,000 crime victims in San Diego County last year. Their involvement begins in the immediate aftermath of a crime and can last through years of a lengthy legal process.

Fourteen of the advocates operate out of the District Attorney’s Victim Services Division. This week, the division’s work is in the spotlight as the DA hosts the National Organization for Victim Assistance Conference, a gathering of hundreds of victim assistance professionals from across North America and Europe.

“We are part of the prosecutor’s team,” Victim Services Director Cynthia Charlebois explained during a break at the conference. “The prosecutors are very sensitive to the needs of the victim. They really rely on the victim advocate.”

Charlebois’ office receives every crime report from local police or the Sheriff’s department that involves a victim. An advocate is assigned and typically makes contact with the victim within two to three days. In murder cases, they get in touch with family members.

“We’ve heard it all. The worst of the worst,” Charlebois said. “Sadly, there’s nothing that will probably ever shock us. And we’re prepared to deal with these situations.”

Sadly, there’s nothing that will probably ever shock us. And we’re prepared to deal with these situations.
-Cynthia Charlebois, Director, District Attorney’s Victim Services

The advocates come from backgrounds such as social work, psychology, or staffing crisis hotlines. Their first step is conducting a needs assessment. That could be finding counseling services for the victim or a place to stay. In domestic violence cases, particularly when the suspect is expected to be released on bail, the victim may need emergency relocation. The advocates can handle those arrangements.

They can also assist with the grim physical and logistical tasks spawned by violence. Cleaning up a home that became the scene of a crime. Arranging a funeral or burial.  And then helping the victim or survivors get those expenses covered through the California Victim Compensation Program, which is funded mainly by restitution fines that convicted offenders are ordered to pay.

The advocates also walk victims through the long and daunting legal process.

“It’s a very overwhelming, intimidating system if you’re not familiar with it,” Charlebois said.

The advocates not only explain the steps ahead, they accompany the victims in person along the way. They sit in during interviews by police or prosecutors, and join victims at some court proceedings.  If the victim needs to testify, the advocate can help prepare for the ordeal of sitting across from the attacker and recounting a traumatic encounter. 

Because the process can be drawn out and victims forced to relive their nightmares repeatedly, Charlebois said  they “often they feel revictimized. We try to make the best we can out of the worst situations.”

Advocates help victims create a victim impact statement, which is a  key point in the legal process.  Delivered just before the attacker’s sentencing, this is a victim’s or surviving family member’s chance to describe the harm they have suffered. Charlebois says these emotional statements can carry a great deal of weight with the judges who are imposing sentences.

She said  in one local child murder case that received an extremely high level of community interest, the family wanted to show a video of the child and have a large number of people present for the victim impact statement. The victim advocate arranged to have the sentencing moved to a bigger courtroom.

In some cases, there is no court process; suspects get away or are never identified. Even if an attacker does not face justice, the victim can receive all the services from an  advocate.

Charlebois explains that advocates work out of offices around the county, so they can be easily accessible to the victims and the police and prosecutors they coordinate with. She says a big factor in the local advocates’ success is the good relationship they maintain with law enforcement throughout the region.

“There aren’t egos involved when working with the other agencies. We are all involved for the good of the cause,” she says. “We help each other do our jobs better.”

Charlebois said  it is definitely a demanding, emotionally draining job. But because she believes the justice system needs to be concerned with more than just dealing with the offenders, she finds the work incredibly fulfilling.  

“They’re always so happy to know they can pick up that phone and we’re there,” she says. “When you can help someone who is in the darkest moment of their lives, and help them get back in some way to their pre-crime status, it’s really rewarding.”