Victims, the Forgotten Party in the Criminal Justices System: The Perception and Experiences of Crime Victims in Kumasi Metropolis in Ghana

Crime victims are an integral part of the criminal justice system. There has been recurrent consensus of opinion that without crime victims there can be no effective prosecution. Nevertheless, most studies have been crime-offender-centred. This research explored the experiences of the crime victim i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of victimology and victim justice (Print) Vol. 2; no. 2; pp. 109 - 128
Main Authors: Ofori-Dua, Kwadwo, Onzaberigu, Nachinaab John, Nimako, Richard Kofi
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: New Delhi, India SAGE Publications 01.10.2019
Subjects:
Victimization
Criminal Justice System
Re-victimised
Victims Roles in CJS
Experiences
ISSN:2516-6069, 2516-6077
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Crime victims are an integral part of the criminal justice system. There has been recurrent consensus of opinion that without crime victims there can be no effective prosecution. Nevertheless, most studies have been crime-offender-centred. This research explored the experiences of the crime victim in the criminal justice system. Methodologically, this study employed a qualitative technique, face-to-face interviews to collect data. Purposive, snowball, expert sampling techniques were used to select respondents. The study revealed that although most crime victims were satisfied at the reporting stage, they were dissatisfied getting to the end of the criminal justice system process. Victims of offences as robbery and defrauding wanted their monies back after the imprisonment of offender whilst victims of violent crimes like rape, assault and murder want compensation to foot medical bills and other losses they incurred. Victims generally perceive that prosecution and conviction given to perpetrators were not deterring enough. The findings showed that crime victims felt re-victimised by CJS officials; especially because they were not treated with human dignity and the victims had many interesting conceptions of ‘being treated with dignity’ and ‘not being treated with dignity. The study concluded that the CJS should administer justice expeditiously and should be more inclusive.
ISSN:2516-6069
2516-6077
DOI:10.1177/2516606919885516