People with disabilities are victimized at staggering rates. Despite the disproportionate number of people with disabilities who are crime victims, crimes against them are under-investigated and under-prosecuted. The presenters, drawing from their daily practice, will share concrete examples of the barriers their clients face and articulate strategies for overcoming these. Attendees will learn about how disability rights and crime victims’ rights complement each other; and how to holistically assess the needs of crime victims to ensure that those with disabilities can be best served.

This training will provide an overview of key motions seeking enforcement of victims’ rights, including motions addressing pseudonyms, pretrial release conditions, subpoenas for victims’ records, and more. In addition, the presenters will cover litigation strategies and practice tips to establish a solid foundation from which to protect victims’ rights.

presented by

Amy Liu & Terry Campos, NCVLI

Every state has a statutory provision providing some right to restitution and a number of states have enshrined the right to restitution in their constitutions. During this training, panelists will discuss those legal sources for the right to restitution, explain its purpose, and highlight key cases. The training will also address enforcement for nonpayment and parse promising practices for tracking and seeking restitution.

presented by

Maria "Liz" Cervantez, Colleen Clase, Jessica Gattuso, and Erica Williams

Description
On the morning of Tuesday, June 1, 2021, the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously found in the case United States v. Cooley that a Crow tribal police officer had the authority to detain and search a non-Native suspected of committing a crime on a highway crossing through the Crow Reservation. Cooley, a non-Native, had challenged the authority of tribal law enforcement to stop and detain non-Indians who are suspected of committing crimes within the borders of an Indian reservation and asked the Supreme Court to uphold the Ninth Circuit’s decision which concluded that tribal law enforcement can only stop and detain a non-Indian suspected of committing a crime if it is “apparent” or “obvious” that a crime is being committed. The presenter will discuss the amicus curiae brief filed on behalf of the National Indigenous Women’s Resource, asking the Court to uphold the inherent sovereignty of Tribal Nations to protect their women and children from non-Indian perpetrators of crimes on tribal lands. The presenter will also discuss the Supreme Court’s decision’s impact on issues related to safety for Native women.

Presented By:
Mary Nagle, Partner, Pipestem & Nagle, P.C.

presented by

Mary Nagle, Partner, Pipestem & Nagle, P.C.

This session will discuss military justice systems, common victim experiences within these systems, and identify opportunities for representation of crime victims by civilian attorneys.

presented by

Ryan Guilds

This session will discuss the intersectionality and complexity of labor trafficking. Many survivors experience labor/sex exploitation and sexual violence during their victimization. As a result, these survivors need additional services, and their rights as crime victims to be amplified. There often is a tendency to mischaracterize the victimization as sexual assault or domestic violence. With these complexities in mind, presenters will describe the challenges and limitations of crime victims’ rights in these cases focusing on the tension between receiving victim services and asserting rights only when there is a report of the crime and how this impacts labor trafficking victims' access to redress, trusted support, and opportunities to make an informed decision about their rights and options.

presented by

Rose Mukhar & Erika Petty

​​​​​​​The court system contains challenges that victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, elder or child abuse experience when navigating the court process. Due process requires that those coming before the court system have notice and an opportunity to be heard. However, certain victims may experience barriers to accessing justice. Challenges such as disabilities, language, age, income, geography, or even the implicit bias of court professionals can make justice inaccessible and undermine the integrity of our court system. How do victims’ advocates and other justice professionals safeguard our highest value of justice for all? What kind of collaborations are most effective in ensuring due process for victims? Ensuring that court professionals meet victims’ procedural needs procedurally, requires a collaborative, multifaceted approach that includes civil and criminal procedures, knowledge of the court system, accommodations that can overcome physical, cultural, emotional and other barriers and holistic services which meet a victim’s needs as the court process concludes. This workshop will provide strategies that will enable “Multidisciplinary Collaboration Teams,” which include civil, criminal justice professionals, court, and community-based advocates to make justice accessible for all victims. The presentation will enable attendees to 1) gain an understanding the requirements of due process; 2) be able to identify the elements of procedural due process; 3) be able to recognize factors inherent in the court system that impede access to justice, and 4) understand strategies for effective collaboration among “Multidisciplinary Collaboration Teams” to improve access to justice.

presented by

Sharla Jackson & Tomieka Daniel

What are the unique considerations and challenges in providing legal services to older adults to protect their rights against scams and frauds as well as sexual assaults and domestic violence? How do we empower older adults through access to information and services, and build community responses to address elder abuse in rural areas? In addition to these key questions, the presenters will discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the service providers’ ability to reach older adults and innovative practices developed to overcome those challenges. The presenters will share practice pointers and relevant data and share resources to support elder abuse legal practice.

presented by

Avery Vinson, Silvia Torres, Allie Yang-Green, and Megan Wood

The human trafficking field has not been immune from the impact of systemic racism despite efforts to protect victims, especially in the criminal legal system. BIPOC survivors of human trafficking continue to be victimized by the criminal legal system in criminal defense, victims’ rights advocacy, and criminal record relief. This session will focus on how B IPOC survivors continue to be victimized by the criminal system whether through being disproportionately arrested, charged and/or convicted for crimes they were forced to commit by the traffickers, pressured to serve as a victimwitness under threats of criminalization, or the use of diversion courts to coerce survivors into engaging in services. Additionally, presenters will use the framework of Victims’ Rights Advocacy to provide useful practices for examining and confronting racism in the criminal legal system in the fight against human trafficking. Panelists will highlight through a Critical Race Theory (CRT) lens, the importance of Victims’ Rights attorneys in addressing racism within the criminal legal system, ways to assert victims’ rights and practical tools for engaging the criminal legal system from a CRT perspective.

presented by

Erika Gonzalez & Nagwa Ibrahim

Victims often struggle to identify where to turn for information regarding restitution after their offender is convicted. From court to corrections, restitution processes are often siloed with little communication and consistency between agencies. NCVLI Attorneys will present a hypothetical case to a panel of victim advocates and attorneys with experience advocating for and securing restitution to highlight the challenges presented from silos of practice and identify options for simplifying the process for victims.

presented by

Scott Beard, Terry Campos, Liz Cervantez, Pamela Ferguson-Bray, Rebecca Khalil, Josh Lamborn, and Gina Skinner