State Board of Pardons and Paroles Fiscal Year 2015 Annual Report
FY15 Victims Visitors' Days
Forsyth, Georgia - April 14, 2015
Seventy-four (74) victims and family members of victims attended the Victims Visitors’ Day (VVD) held in conjunction with the state's annual National Crime Victims' Rights Week Ceremony. Georgia's Multi-State Agency Victim Services Partnership sponsors the ceremony and open house.
Victim Offender Dialogue
The Office of Victim Services’ (OVS) Victim Offender Dialogue (VOD) program provides an opportunity for victims of violent crimes to have a structured, safe, direct, one-on-one meeting with the offender who committed the crime. The program allows the victim and offender to discuss the crime and its impact on the victim. VOD can only be initiated by the victim and the offender must voluntarily agree to participate and must acknowledge his/her role in the crime.
VOD requires a lengthy preparation process involving both the victim and the offender working separately with a trained facilitator. In FY15, the Georgia Office of Victim Services conducted eight Victim Offender Dialogue sessions involving victims and offenders. Victims interested in the program may contact the Office of Victim Services at 404-651-6668.
Additional Services of the Georgia Office of
Victim Services
Victim Impact Statements and Protest Letters are submitted to the Parole Board for review;
Notification of parole consideration, release, and supervision of offenders;
Advocacy for victims, including assisting victims with unwanted contact from offenders and offender compliance with court-mandated conditions;
Victim referrals to community based resources and services;
Preparation and orientation for family members of homicide victims for pending executions in death penalty cases.
Photos in this section show the staff of the Georgia Office of Victim Services and Board Members and staff with crime victims at Victims Visitors' Days in Columbus and Forsyth.
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