Victim Impact Statements (NSW)
A person who becomes the victim of a crime in New South Wales may write a Victim Impact Statement (VIS) setting out how the offence affected them. The VIS will then be handed up in court and taken into account when the court is considering the appropriate sentencing orders to make. This page deals with Victim Impact Statements in New South Wales.
What is a Victim Impact Statement?
A Victim Impact Statement is a document prepared for the court detailing the impact of an offence on an individual. It gives victims of crime an opportunity to be heard, and it gives the court the opportunity to take into account the precise nature of the harm that an offence has caused to individual victims when deciding on sentencing orders.
What may a VIS include?
A VIS may be made by a primary victim (the person against whom the offence was committed or a person who witnessed violence) or by a family victim (a family member of a person who died as the result of an offence or a family member of a pregnant woman who lost the fetus as a result of the offence).
A VIS by a primary victim may include details about any personal harm, emotional harm or distress, harm to relationships with other persons, and economic loss.
A VIS by a family victim may include details of the impact of the family member’s death or the loss of the fetus on the family victim and other members of their immediate family.
What must a Victim Impact Statement not include?
A Victim Impact Statement must not contain opinions about the character of the offender, offensive language, or details of the crime itself. It should not include statements about medical conditions unless they are accompanied with evidence.
Reading of Victim Impact Statement
A VIS may be read out loud in court. The statement may be read by the victim or by their representative. A victim is entitled to have a support person with them in court when their victim impact statement is read out.
When a sexual assault matter is being dealt with, the VIS will be read in closed court unless the victim has consented to this occurring in open court. In any matter, a victim can apply to have their VIS read out in closed court or over closed circuit TV. A victim can request the court not disclose some or all of the content of the Victim Impact Statement to the offender.
Parole
When a person applies for parole, victims may provide their views and concerns about the person receiving parole to the State Parole Authority (SPA). Victims’ submissions are taken into account when the SPA makes its decision and are kept confidential.
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