Victim Statements
Jennifer Moore is a Phoenix police officer who was shot during a traffic stop of a suspicious car. The gunman, Aaron Lopez, fired two shots at Moore. One bullet ripped through her right ring finger, and another struck her chest but was stopped by her bullet-proof vest. Here are excerpts from her victim statement:
“I have had months of rehabilitation and frustration following my surgeries. I continue to have constant pain in my hand every single day . . .”
“Our firearms instructors have endlessly helped me to regain confidence in shooting accurately, as well as being around other officers while they are shooting to . . . get used to the sound of the gun going off . . . Any such sound elevates my heart rate and I immediately begin to sweat and my ears begin to ring because I flash back to when Lopez tried to kill me. . . ”
“I hate conducting traffic stops now, but I do them anyway to overcome the anxiety . . . Even after I have patted a subject down or in my personal life, as soon as a person reaches into his or her pocket I . . . feel [a] burning sensation and pain in my finger, followed by anger.”
“If I come across someone who resembles Lo
pez . . . I begin to sweat, the tension builds, and I begin to shake uncontrollably from the adrenaline buildup. After several minutes, it calms down and . . . I have no energy and feel like I haven’t slept for days.” (Remsberg, 2010)
Victim statements were first utilized in 1976 (Alexander & Lord, 1994). These statements allow victims to share their perspectives at sentencing, giving them a chance to have their voices heard. Although victim statements currently are allowed in most jurisdictions, controversy exists surrounding the use of these statements. Some argue that victim statements help a judge to accurately sentence an offender based on the extent of pain and trauma the crime caused the victim. Others argue that victim statements should be irrelevant to an offender’s sentence, which should focus solely on the crime and not on the victim. In addition, critics argue that victim statements create unrealistic expectations in victims, leading them to believe that their statements carry more weight than they actually do (Davis, 2013).
For this Discussion, consider the arguments for and against allowing victim statements to be heard in the courtroom prior to sentencing.