The National Professional Training Conference on Responding to Crime Victims with Disabilities will serve to enhance the knowledge, skills, and abilities of providers to effectively serve people with disabilities who are victims of crime, (e.g. abuse, and neglect, etc.).The conference will facilitate partnerships among the fields of victim assistance, advocacy for persons with disabilities, and allied professions (e.g. adult and child protective service workers, faith-based practitioners, medical practitioners/forensic examiners, mental health practitioners, educators) for conference participation.

This conference was funded by the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime to the National Center for Victims of Crime and the Joint Center on Violence and Victim Studies. These organizations have partnered with the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC)/Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (PCAR), the National Sheriffs' Association, the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, and Davis Innovations, Inc.

We are seeking presenters for workshops to address a wide range of topics organized into separate conference tracks. The 2009 conference will emphasize a multidisciplinary approach in sharing promising practices, current research, and effective policies to ensure comprehensive responses, rights, and resources for all crime victims with disabilities. We are especially seeking workshops that have practical hands-on skill-building focus, or focus on new research in the field.

Since this is a national program, teams that represent a wide spectrum of geographic and cultural experiences will be sought. Representation on the teams of practitioners and advocates with disabilities who have been victims of crime is strongly encouraged. A limited number of scholarships are available for multi-disciplinary teams. Team scholarships serve to encourage individuals from diverse organizations and disciplines to engage in the professional development, collaboration, and planning afforded by the conference in order to address the unique needs of crime victims with disabilities.

Organizations that offer products or services to those working in the fields of victim services, disability services, or allied areas are invited to participate in the conference through one or more exhibitor options. Please spread the word about this unique training opportunity to your constituents and colleagues. Feel free to send information to any listserves, organizations, community forums, or individuals who would benefit from participating in this training program.

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: Rand, Michael R.
Title: National Crime Victimization Survey: Criminal Victimization, 2007 (NCJ 224390)
Date: 2008
Publisher: U.S. Dept of Justice, Office of Justice Programs
Reviewer: Bernadette Muscat, Ph.D.

In December 2008, the Bureau of Justice Statistics published the most recent statistics regarding criminal victimization for 2007. The statistics are based upon the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), a nationally representative sample of 41,500 households and 73,600 individuals over 12 years old. The NCVS collects data on all reported and non- reported non-fatal violent and property crimes. According to the latest statistics, an estimated 5.2 million people were the victims of violent crimes and 17.5 million were victimized by property crimes. These numbers indicate that an estimated 23 million residents were victimized representing the lowest levels of victimization since 1973, the first year that the data were available. According to the 2007 NCVS data, approximately half of violent crimes and two-thirds of property crimes were not reported to the police. Over a nine year period from 1998 to 2007, violent crime rates decreased 43%, property crime rates decreased 33%, and the rate of firearm violence decreased.

Overall, the data indicated the following:
* Males, African Americans, and people under 24 years old were more likely to be the victims of violent crimes than females, Caucasians, and those over 25 years old.
* Males were more likely than females to be victims of violent crime, robbery, and assault.
* Females were more likely to be victimized by rape or sexual assault than their male counterparts.
* African Americans were more likely to be victims of robbery and overall violence as compared to Caucasians.
* People who self-identified as more than one race were victims of violence at higher rates than those self- identifying as a single race.
* Hispanics were more likely to be the victims of robbery, than non-Hispanics.
* Non-Hispanics were more likely to be the victim of a simple assault when compared to Hispanics.
* People ages 12 to 19 experienced higher violent crime victimization than people ages 20 to 24.
* Those over 50 years old experienced lower rates of violent victimization than people in younger age cohorts.
* Property crimes were approximately 1.5 times higher for lower income households (less than $7500) than for those households earning more than $75,000 per year.
* Households with six or more people were 2.6 times more likely to be the victims of property crimes than single person households.
* Females continue to be victimized by someone they know, except in robbery where women noted being equally victimized by strangers and non- strangers.
* Males were equally likely to be victimized by a stranger or non-stranger.
* About 623,000 violent crimes were committed by an intimate partner
* Approximately 20% of all violent crime included an armed offender.

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