Victims & Witnesses

Featured Resource

Victims and witnesses are key to almost any case. Preventing intimidation, affirming protection, and maintaining cooperation are all challenges that prosecutors may face. We look at tactics for effectively working with victims and witnesses in these resources. 

  • mental illness report

    Victims, Witnesses, and Defendants with Mental Illness or Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

    Authors: Arc, NAMI, PCE

    Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) or mental illness are overrepresented in the criminal justice system, as victims, witnesses, suspects, and defendants. In an effort to inform prosecutors’ strategies when working with these individuals, PCE, in collaboration with the Arc and NAMI, has developed this guide.

    The guide includes the following information:

    • An overview of I/DD and mental illness and the legal obligations involved when interacting with people with I/ DD or mental illness
    • Practical approaches for prosecutors to more effectively work with these populations, as victims, witnesses, or defendants
    • Examples of programs that prosecutors have either created or participated in that address the involvement of persons with I/DD or mental illness in the criminal justice system
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  • Witness_Intimidation

    Witness Intimidation: What You Can Do To Protect Your Witness

    Witness intimidation and witness tampering can occur in any case, from simple misdemeanors to homicides. It has a variety of consequences from the silencing of an entire community, to the murder of a witness, to the recantation of truthful testimony. Though witness intimidation is an insidious problem, there are strategies throughout the investigation and prosecution of a case that can help to keep a witness safe and reduce the impact of intimidation.

    Authors: PCE

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Additional PCE Resources