ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the historical context, including social movements, grassroots coalitions, and lobbying efforts that led to increased awareness of victims' rights and the passage of crime victims' rights legislation. The Victim and Witness Protection Act of 1982 (VWPA) was passed in reaction to the alienation victims experience at the hands of the criminal justice system. The Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (VOCA) revolutionized the way that victims were compensated for their crimes. The 1990 passage of the Victims' Rights and Restitution Act (VRRA) was another groundbreaking piece of legislation in that it codified specific victims' rights and services into law. In 1991, the International Parental Kidnapping Crime Act was introduced in Congress to amend the federal criminal code to penalize a person for the international kidnapping of a child. Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) provides funding and directives to other federal agencies. The chapter recognizes the future path federal victims' legislation may take in the United States.
