Victims of crime should be provided with legal representation, Victorian inquiry finds

Victims expect to play a part in the justice process but most feel ‘relegated to the role of a passive witness’, ‘having no say’ and being ‘told nothing’, Victoria’s Victims of Crime Commissioner says. Photograph: James Ross/AAP

Victims of crime feel “silenced and sidelined” from the moment they speak to police through to when the courts finalise their case, with a landmark Victorian inquiry calling for sexual assault survivors in particular to have legal representation.

A systemic inquiry into victims’ participation in the justice system by Victoria’s Victims of Crime Commissioner (VOCC) identified a gap between the entitlements of victims “on paper” and their actual experiences.