Providing Trauma-Informed and Victim-Centered Services Post-Conviction
May 10, 2022 from 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) is pleased to announce that registration is now open for “Providing Trauma-Informed and Victim-Centered Services Post-Conviction.” Crime victims and survivors have traditionally been led to believe that a conviction will lead to closure, but nothing could be further from the truth. Victims and survivors are rarely provided with details about the full scope of the criminal justice process and, thus, are often unprepared for the variety of potentially re-traumatizing case activity that can happen post-conviction. Victims and survivors will share their experience in the post-conviction space and what it has been like for them to navigate the post-conviction justice process without sufficient information or support. They will highlight the particular challenges and difficulties that arise in cases involving post-conviction claims of innocence and exonerations. Healing Justice Staff will then share victim-centered and trauma-informed recommendations around victim notification, services, and ongoing support. This training will highlight cases of post-conviction exoneration and claims of innocence, but the lessons learned will be translated to apply to the spectrum of service delivery. Attendees will learn:
- What information victims need and when;
- How to deliver a trauma-informed response;
- How to ensure better outcomes for all;
- Ways to restore victims' trust in the criminal justice system.
Presenters:
Janet Burke is a crime survivor whose case resulted in a wrongful conviction and exoneration 27 years after the original crime. The DNA evidence that led to the exoneration also identified the actual perpetrator, who was responsible for numerous other assaults. Because of her experience with the justice system, Janet has become an advocate for all victims, with a focus on those impacted by wrongful convictions. Janet works closely with Healing Justice, where she is a founding Advisory Committee member and trained peer supporter. She also works with the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project sharing her story to help others. Janet is the Director of Child Development Services at ChildSavers, a nonprofit organization providing services to children and those working with children who have been impacted by trauma and other critical moments that obstruct typical child development. At ChildSavers, Janet is able to weave her life experiences and passion to fight for those who do not always have a voice.
Andrea Harrison is a crime victim surviving family member. Her mother, Jacqueline Harrison, was brutally raped, tortured, and murdered when Andrea was a child. Eighteen years later, the man convicted of the crime was exonerated and freed based on DNA evidence. Now considered a cold case, Andrea and her family continue to seek “Justice for Jackie.” Andrea has become an ardent advocate for victims’ rights, focusing on children whose parents have been victims of a violent crime. She utilizes her personal platform to bring awareness to the need for victim and surviving children’s support. By sharing her experience, Andrea’s call to action is that victims and their families should stand up in bravery, speak out against injustice, and fight back to change the narrative of violent crime victimization and re-victimization, especially in cases of exoneration. Andrea is a founding member of Healing Justice’s Advisory Committee and a trained peer supporter for other victim family members.
Katie Monroe is Executive Director of Healing Justice. Before joining Healing Justice, she served as Senior Advocate for National Partnerships at the Innocence Project, where she worked to develop collaboration with other criminal justice stakeholders including crime victims, police, and prosecutors. Prior to that, she was Executive Director at the Rocky Mountain Innocence Center and Senior Counsel at the Constitution Project and US Commission on Civil Rights. Katie has taught law school courses at both George Mason University and the University of Utah, and has served on the Board of Directors for the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project and the national Innocence Network, as well as on the Victim Services Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Katie received her Juris Doctor from George Mason University Law School in 1990 and subsequently specialized in post-conviction criminal legal practice, particularly cases involving claims of innocence and exonerations. She led the project with the Office for Victims of Crime, Responding to Original Victims in Wrongful Conviction Cases, which resulted in key new tools and resources for victim advocates, attorneys, and others in these cases.
Natalia Aguirre is the Director of Justice Programs at Healing Justice. Natalia joined Healing Justice with extensive experience working with multi-disciplinary professionals to increase their capacity for providing victim services as well as improving operations, efficiencies, and building stronger collaborative environments. Prior to joining Healing Justice, Natalia was a Visiting Researcher at the International Centre for Policy Advocacy in Berlin, Germany working on strategic communications. Previously, she was the Director for the Family Justice Center Alliance (FJCA) where she worked on the expansion of victim services in Family Justice Centers across the country and around the world. In this role, Natalia also provided professional training on the development and creation of Family Justice Centers (FJCs), polyvictimization, program evaluation, leadership, trauma informed care, and how to better serve survivors. Natalia also led a Demonstration Initiative for the Office for Victims of Crime with six Family Justice Center communities around the U.S. She and the Demonstration Team were awarded the 2020 National Crime Victims Research Award from the U.S. Department of Justice for their innovative and groundbreaking work.
Participant Registration and Cost: This training is free. Participants need to register in advance for the training. Please visit here to register.