About the Victim’s Bill Of Rights
 Court Descriptions
 Your rights as a crime victim
 Your responsibilities as a crime victim
 Coping with stress
 Assistance for crime victims
 Community resources for crime victims

About the Victim’s Bill Of Rights

In 1997, the South Carolina General Assembly approved the Victim’s Bill of Rights. This law defines how victims of crimes in South Carolina will be treated, describes the responsibilities of victims and details the roles of government agencies in providing services to victims. The intent of the law is to:

“...ensure that all victims of and witnesses to a crime are treated with dignity, respect, courtesy and sensitivity; that all the rights and services extended in this article to victims of and witnesses to a crime are honored and protected by law enforcement agencies, prosecutors and judges in a manner no less vigorous that the protections afforded to criminal defendants; and that State has a responsibility to provide support to a network of services for victims of a crime, including victims of domestic violence and criminal sexual assault.”

Under the law, a victim is defined as a person who, because of a crime or an attempted crime was hurt physically, mentally, or financially. If the victim was killed during the performance of a crime, or if the victim is under the age of 17, or incapable of making decision, or physically or intellectually disabled, then “victim” will also include that person’s husband or wife, parent, child, or the lawful representative.

Who is not a victim? If a husband, wife, parent, a child, or a lawful representative is the subject of the investigation, or has either been convicted, pled guilty, or pled nolo contendre to the crime in question, that person is not a victim. Also, if a husband, wife, parent, a child, or lawful representatives acting on behalf of the suspect, juvenile offender, or the defendant, then that person cannot be considered a victim.

Under the Victims Bill of Rights, a criminal offense is defined as an illegal action that causes a person bodily or emotional harm, or causes more than on thousand dollars of damage to a person’s property. Criminal offense does not include illegally issuing a fraudulent check against a person’s bank account.

[ Full text of the South Carolina Victim's Bill of Rights. ]