Crime Victim/Witness Counseling

The program provides victim of crime support services for people of all ages in Los Angeles County who have been victimized by crime and for people who have witnessed crimes. Services include crime victim support, certificates/forms assistance, crime victim counseling, and public awareness/education. There is no legal residency requirement and there are no geographic restrictions.

The services provided by the program may include information about the rights of people who have been victimized and people who are witnesses and about the court process, referrals for needed social services, preparation for a court appearance, assistance in obtaining restitution when appropriate, counseling for victims and their significant others, notification about court appearances, accompaniment to court and security for victims or witnesses who have been threatened, and assistance in filing with the state for compensation.

The program compensates eligible people for crime related losses for immediate needs, as a last resort after all other options have been exhausted (see the Separate Entry: CA STATE VICTIM COMPENSATION PROGRAM AND GOVERNMENT CLAIMS BOARD). Compensation limitations apply.

To qualify, the victim must:
- cooperate in the investigation and prosecution of suspects
- not have participated in or contributed to the crime
- not be a registered sex offender
- not be on violent felony probation or parole
LANGUAGES OTHER THAN ENGLISH Staff are available to assist victims in many languages including Spanish, Cantonese, Korean, Japanese, Russian, Tagalog, Vietnamese, American Sign Language and Armenian.