This course tracks the victim's role through all stages of criminal procedure, from
investigation through sentence and post-sentence matters. It examines state constitutions and federal statutory victims' rights. The course analyzes definitions of "victim" to see who is included and excluded; examines gender and racial bias in criminal justice and how these impact response to crime; and engages with underlying cultural dynamics and their relationship with the legal system to assess how law serves as a force that preserves or destroys relationships of power.
This course offers the opportunity to understand both the practice and the theory of law emerging in this area.