
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC10607]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
             CHAPTER 112--VICTIM COMPENSATION AND ASSISTANCE
 
Sec. 10607. Services to victims


(a) Designation of responsible officials

    The head of each department and agency of the United States engaged 
in the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime shall designate 
by names and office titles the persons who will be responsible for 
identifying the victims of crime and performing the services described 
in subsection (c) of this section at each stage of a criminal case.

(b) Identification of victims

    At the earliest opportunity after the detection of a crime at which 
it may be done without interfering with an investigation, a responsible 
official shall--
        (1) identify the victim or victims of a crime;
        (2) inform the victims of their right to receive, on request, 
    the services described in subsection (c) of this section; and
        (3) inform each victim of the name, title, and business address 
    and telephone number of the responsible official to whom the victim 
    should address a request for each of the services described in 
    subsection (c) of this section.

(c) Description of services

    (1) A responsible official shall--
        (A) inform a victim of the place where the victim may receive 
    emergency medical and social services;
        (B) inform a victim of any restitution or other relief to which 
    the victim may be entitled under this or any other law and \1\ 
    manner in which such relief may be obtained;
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ So in original. Probably should be followed by ``the''.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        (C) inform a victim of public and private programs that are 
    available to provide counseling, treatment, and other support to the 
    victim; and
        (D) assist a victim in contacting the persons who are 
    responsible for providing the services and relief described in 
    subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C).

    (2) A responsible official shall arrange for a victim to receive 
reasonable protection from a suspected offender and persons acting in 
concert with or at the behest of the suspected offender.
    (3) During the investigation and prosecution of a crime, a 
responsible official shall provide a victim the earliest possible notice 
of--
        (A) the status of the investigation of the crime, to the extent 
    it is appropriate to inform the victim and to the extent that it 
    will not interfere with the investigation;
        (B) the arrest of a suspected offender;
        (C) the filing of charges against a suspected offender;
        (D) the scheduling of each court proceeding that the witness is 
    either required to attend or, under section 10606(b)(4) \2\ of this 
    title, is entitled to attend;
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\ See References in Text note below.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
        (E) the release or detention status of an offender or suspected 
    offender;
        (F) the acceptance of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or the 
    rendering of a verdict after trial; and
        (G) the sentence imposed on an offender, including the date on 
    which the offender will be eligible for parole.

    (4) During court proceedings, a responsible official shall ensure 
that a victim is provided a waiting area removed from and out of the 
sight and hearing of the defendant and defense witnesses.
    (5) After trial, a responsible official shall provide a victim the 
earliest possible notice of--
        (A) the scheduling of a parole hearing for the offender;
        (B) the escape, work release, furlough, or any other form of 
    release from custody of the offender; and
        (C) the death of the offender, if the offender dies while in 
    custody.

    (6) At all times, a responsible official shall ensure that any 
property of a victim that is being held for evidentiary purposes be 
maintained in good condition and returned to the victim as soon as it is 
no longer needed for evidentiary purposes.
    (7) The Attorney General or the head of another department or agency 
that conducts an investigation of a sexual assault shall pay, either 
directly or by reimbursement of payment by the victim, the cost of a 
physical examination of the victim which an investigating officer 
determines was necessary or useful for evidentiary purposes. The 
Attorney General shall provide for the payment of the cost of up to 2 
anonymous and confidential tests of the victim for sexually transmitted 
diseases, including HIV, gonorrhea, herpes, chlamydia, and syphilis, 
during the 12 months following sexual assaults that pose a risk of 
transmission, and the cost of a counseling session by a medically 
trained professional on the accuracy of such tests and the risk of 
transmission of sexually transmitted diseases to the victim as the 
result of the assault. A victim may waive anonymity and confidentiality 
of any tests paid for under this section.
    (8) A responsible official shall provide the victim with general 
information regarding the corrections process, including information 
about work release, furlough, probation, and eligibility for each.

(d) No cause of action or defense

    This section does not create a cause of action or defense in favor 
of any person arising out of the failure of a responsible person to 
provide information as required by subsection (b) or (c) of this 
section.

(e) Definitions

    For the purposes of this section--
        (1) the term ``responsible official'' means a person designated 
    pursuant to subsection (a) of this section to perform the functions 
    of a responsible official under that section; and
        (2) the term ``victim'' means a person that has suffered direct 
    physical, emotional, or pecuniary harm as a result of the commission 
    of a crime, including--
            (A) in the case of a victim that is an institutional entity, 
        an authorized representative of the entity; and
            (B) in the case of a victim who is under 18 years of age, 
        incompetent, incapacitated, or deceased, one of the following 
        (in order of preference):
                (i) a spouse;
                (ii) a legal guardian;
                (iii) a parent;
                (iv) a child;
                (v) a sibling;
                (vi) another family member; or
                (vii) another person designated by the court.

(Pub. L. 101-647, title V, Sec. 503, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4820; Pub. 
L. 103-322, title IV, Sec. 40503(a), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1946.)

                       References in Text

    Section 10606(b)(4) of this title, referred to in subsec. (c)(3)(D), 
was in the original ``section 1102(b)(4)'', meaning section 1102(b)(4) 
of Pub. L. 101-647, which has been translated as reading section 
502(b)(4) of Pub. L. 101-647 to reflect the probable intent of Congress 
because Pub. L. 101-647 does not contain a section 1102 and section 
502(b)(4) relates to the right of crime victims to be present at public 
court proceedings.

                          Codification

    Section enacted as part of the Victims' Rights and Restitution Act 
of 1990 and also as part of the Crime Control Act of 1990, and not as 
part of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 which comprises this chapter.


                               Amendments

    1994--Subsec. (c)(7). Pub. L. 103-322 inserted at end ``The Attorney 
General shall provide for the payment of the cost of up to 2 anonymous 
and confidential tests of the victim for sexually transmitted diseases, 
including HIV, gonorrhea, herpes, chlamydia, and syphilis, during the 12 
months following sexual assaults that pose a risk of transmission, and 
the cost of a counseling session by a medically trained professional on 
the accuracy of such tests and the risk of transmission of sexually 
transmitted diseases to the victim as the result of the assault. A 
victim may waive anonymity and confidentiality of any tests paid for 
under this section.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in title 18 section 3510.
