The JCVVS Professional Certificate in Victim Assistance: Critical Analysis was awarded to Gayle Thom, FBI Victim Specialists in South Dakota. In addition to participation in the professional education course, Gayle successfully passed a comprehensive exam, wrote a critical analysis paper entitled "Coming Together: Expanding Multidisciplinary Teams" and made an oral presentation at the University of South Dakota. She will also be presenting at the FBI Academy in Quantico later this summer.

The next Critical Analysis of Victim Assistance course is scheduled for September 17-19 at California State University, Fresno. Visit the website indicated below or call 800-910-4308.

JCVVS e-newsletter reviews offer a brief synopsis of research and programs relevant to violence and victim studies. Brevity does not allow for comprehensive analysis, rather key points and observations for further review and consideration. Reviews are provided by persons affiliated by the JCVVS and do not necessarily reflect the position of the JCVVS or the affiliate Universities.

Author: Paul Rock
Source: Constructing Victims' Rights: The Home Office, New Labour, and Victims (2004) New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 581 pages.
Reviewer: Bernadette Muscat

Constructing Victims' Rights: The Home Office, New Labour, and Victims provides a comprehensive dissection of the development, implementation, and historical context of victims' rights, policies, and programs in England. The historical backdrop begins in the mid-1990s and continues for almost a decade, weaving together various social and political efforts that were underway during that time. The author provides numerous examples to illustrate the importance of victims' rights and the reluctance of politicos to grant victims' rights. The author does a very good job at highlighting the snail's pace with which policy and change can occur and the parallel societal and political misperceptions that victims' rights and corresponding policy were not needed. The author does an excellent job at detailing the many factors that served as an impetus and impediment to policy change. Rock also recognizes that it is equally important to understand the obstacles and barriers to change and how these can be overcome.

Constructing Victims' Rights: The Home Office, New Labour, and Victims is very well researched with access to many organizational documents allowing for a rich history to be displayed. The book is well suited for the seasoned reader who wants to gain a comprehensive understanding of policymaking. It is particularly interesting because it details the harsh realities of policy making that are not always sensitive to the plight of victims. Overall the book provides a comprehensive overview of the process of political and societal change. The lessons drawn from this reading are broadly applicable to politics and policymaking.

The following was submitted by Dr. Steve Walker from CSU-Fresno, a long time friend and professional associate of Harvey Wallace.

Funeral services were held Thursday, June 28, 2007, for Fresno State criminology professor Harvey Wallace, 62, who died unexpectedly Thursday, June 21. Harvey was a prolific textbook author in the field of victimology, a founding faculty member of the National Victim Assistance Academy, and an early advocate and supporter of the Joint Center on Violence and Victim Studies. He was chair of the Criminology Department for six years and also served as interim Associate Dean for the College of Social Sciences before returning to the faculty ranks in 2005.

He joined the criminology faculty as an Associate Professor in 1992. From 1997 to 2003, he chaired the Criminology Department and in recent years helped spearhead the university's first Mock Trial Program. Harvey was considered an expert in the area of Victimology and Family Violence. He was most recently teaching in the Victim Services Summer Institute presented by the Criminology Department as part of its Victim Services Certificate Program. He worked tirelessly for the expansion of the Victimology Major. He was a faculty member for the National Victim Assistance Academy for almost 10 years, while being a key contributor to its early development and also taught other professional education courses for the Joint Center on Violence and Victim Studies. Harvey was also instrumental in working on the development of the first doctorate in Victimology. As a fitting tribute to his work, the final approval of this doctorate came from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges the day after his death.

Harvey was the Criminology Department's most prolific textbook author. He wrote nine textbooks covering Victimology, criminal law, criminology, police administration, interpersonal communication and multicultural issues. His text, "Family Violence: Legal, Medical and Social Perspectives-4th Edition," is considered one of the leading texts in the field of Victimology. His most recent area of research was on the topic of "Human Trafficking."

He was a leader in developing the Criminology Honors Program and was recently appointed interim director of the program. The mock trial team, for which he was lead coach and faculty adviser, made an impressive showing in its first two years against established powerhouses. During regional competition in February, the team narrowly missed qualifying for the national competition in a near upset of defending national champion UCLA.

He earned a bachelor of science at Fresno State in 1966, an MPA at Golden Gate University, San Francisco in 1989 and a juris doctorate from California Western School of Law, U.S. International University in 1974.

Harvey was a retired colonel in the United States Marine Corps. He served as a platoon commander in Viet Nam (1967-68) and served with the Marine Expeditionary Force in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm (1990-91). Among his numerous campaign and service ribbons, he received the Silver Star, two Purple Hearts, Meritorious Service Medal and the Combat Action Ribbon. In Marine annals, he is listed prominently as one of three "heroes" in the Battle of Ka Sahn during the Viet Nam conflict.

Harvey was a scholar, mentor, author, colleague, patriot, loving father and grandfather who will be dearly missed by his family and friends, the department, the university, the victim services field, and the community.

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