Rights behind bars: Access to justice for victims of violent crime suffered in pre-trial or immigration detention Definition of the right The 2012 Directive provides for the right of victims to access specialised support services, free of charge.130 These services include the provision of: • Information, advice and support relevant to the rights of victims; • Information about referral to relevant specialist services, emotional and psychological support; and • Practical advice including in relation to secondary and repeat victimisation, intimidation and retaliation. Access to Victim Support Services should be guaranteed at the earliest stage possible, that is as soon as competent authorities become aware of a situation of victimisation:131 Support should be available from the moment the competent authorities are aware of the victim and throughout criminal proceedings and for an appropriate time after such proceedings in accordance with the needs of the victim and the rights set out in this Directive. Support should be provided “through a variety of means, without excessive formalities” and “allow all victims the opportunity to access such services.”132 In addition, specialised support services should be provided to “[v]ictims who have suffered considerable harm due to the severity of the crime.”133 The 2019 report by the special adviser to the EU Commission’s President on victims’ rights underlines the importance of Victim Support Services as a gateway to other rights under the 2012 Directive, including compensation:134 Many victims point out that victim support services are a key factor in their ability to recover, feel recognised and request compensation. Support through administrative assistance, psychological, post-trauma or resilience guidance, advice and information on success rates and procedures are identified as helpful to victims as an additional part of a compensation scheme and sometimes much more helpful. The 2012 Directive requires “competent authorities and other relevant entities” to facilitate referrals to Victim Support Services.135 In this context, “other relevant entities” include, but are not limited to, “public agencies or entities, such as 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 hospitals, schools, embassies, consulates, welfare or employment services who are in contact with victims and identify the need for the victim to seek the specialised services” of Victim Support Services.136 These entities may also therefore include the Detention Administration. Accordingly, appropriate referral systems between competent authorities and Victim Support Services should be put in place. The necessity for different stakeholders to cooperate and communicate to provide effective rights to victims of crime was also stressed by the Special Adviser to the European Commission President in a 2019 report: “[a]t national level, the care for victims requires close collaboration between public authorities and support services (health, justice, police, psychological assistance, support services and insurance, etc.).”137 The European Commission guidance document related to the transposition and implementation of the 2012 Directive stresses that good referrals systems are key to enforcing Victims’ Rights and describes their absence as “a bottleneck for victims requiring proper support”.138 Challenges with respect to the right to support services In countries that have implemented this aspect of the 2012 Directive,139 victims are usually informed of, and sometimes referred to, Victim Support Services when they file a criminal complaint to the police. Because, as discussed, detained victims of violent crime rarely access these criminal complaint mechanisms, they also rarely, if ever, obtain this help. None of the Member States researched had specific protocols or measures in place to provide Victim Support Services to victims of violent crime in detention. Instead, detainees must rely on the general legal framework available to all victims. The research highlighted the following specific challenges for victims of violent crimes suffered in detention to access Victim Support Services: (i) Victim Support Services are not present and do not generally provide services in detention; (ii) The Detention Administration lacks the training or a relevant protocol regarding Victim Support Services; and (iii) Detainees do not contact Victim Support Services. Articles 8-9 of the 2012 Directive. Recital 37 of the 2012 Directive. Ibid. Ibid. Special Adviser, J. Milquet, to the President of the European Commission, Strengthening Victims’ Rights: From Compensation to Reparation, 2019, p. 57, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/strengthening_victims_rights_-_from_compensation_to_reparation_rev.pdf. Article 8(2) of the 2012 Directive; European Commission guidance document related to the transposition and implementation of the 2012 Directive, p. 14, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/13_12_19_3763804_guidance_victims_rights_directive_eu_en.pdf. Ibid, p. 25. Special Adviser, J. Milquet, to the President of the European Commission, Strengthening Victims’ Rights: From Compensation to Reparation, p. 38, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/strengthening_victims_rights_-_from_compensation_to_reparation_rev.pdf. European Commission guidance document related to the transposition and implementation of the 2012 Directive, pp. 24-25, available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/13_12_19_3763804_guidance_victims_rights_directive_eu_en.pdf. In Italy, the right to access a Victim Support Service is not implemented into national law (research conducted in Italy). 47