7th Annual Crime Victim Law & Litigation Conference May 30-31, 2008 Portland, Oregon

May 31, 2008 marks Doug Beloof's last day as Executive Director

At the end of May, Professor Doug Beloof, founder of NCVLI, will be transitioning from his role as NCVLI’s part-time Executive Director to Board Member, continuing to advance victims’ rights through his teaching and legal expertise.

“In the ten years since I founded it, NCVLI has made great strides in advancing the cause of crime victims' rights. But as states across the nation have adopted laws making victims' rights enforceable, and as the victims' rights movement has gained momentum, NCVLI needs a full-time Executive Director,” Professor Beloof said.

NCVLI’s Board of Directors is interviewing candidates for the position now.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Join the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and other organizations in bringing awareness to sexual violence, a crime that affects 1 in 6 American Women. NCVLI encourages individuals across the country to find ways to get involved, spread awareness, and learn how to prevent this terrible crime.

Law Students Fight for Victims’ Rights

Each semester through the Crime Victim Litigation Clinic, the lawyers of NCVLI work with Lewis & Clark Law School students to advance victims’ rights. One case the students are working on this spring is:

State of Utah v Worthen, --- P.3d ----, 2008 WL 215275 (Utah Ct. App. 2008). In the trial court, defendant moved the court for an in camera review of the minor victim’s counseling records from three separate locations where she received counseling both prior to and after her report of sexual abuse. The state opposed the request, arguing that the records were privileged under Utah’s therapist/patient privilege, and that the defendant’s request was insufficient to pierce such privilege. The trial court ruled in defendant’s favor, holding that he had made a sufficiently specific showing to require a review to determine if evidence existed in the records that related to the victim’s motive to lie. The court of appeals affirmed the trial court, and the state petitioned for a writ of certiorari from the Utah Supreme Court. NCVLI will submit an amicus curiae brief in the Utah Supreme Court, arguing that the victim’s rights to privacy, protection, and fairness, coupled with the importance of maintaining the confidentiality of victims’ counseling records, requires reversal. Law School Students Ben Lull and Beth Jarvis are working on this case.