A victim advocate is an individual who interacts closely with victims of crime and support them in a number of ways. Victim advocates offer a wide range of services, from legal assistance to emotional help.
A victim advocate generally has an educational background in criminal justice, social services, or a similar field, in addition to experience in working with individuals going through traumatic circumstances. Victim advocates are usually available through local law enforcement stations or other state or regional government attorney offices, or social service agencies. The following is an example of a federal statute defining the term:
According to 42 USCS § 13925, the term "victim advocate" means a person, whether paid or serving as a volunteer, who provides services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or dating violence under the auspices or supervision of a victim services program.
The victim - The Mandatory Victim's Restitution Act of 1996 defines a victim as a person directly and proximately harmed as a result of the commission of an offense for which restitution may be ordered including, in the case of an offense that involves as an element a scheme, conspiracy, or pattern of criminal activity, any person directly harmed by the defendant's criminal conduct in the course of the scheme, conspiracy, or pattern. United States v. Metal Lathers Local 46 Pension Fund (In re Local #46 Metallic Lathers Union), 568 F.3d 81 (2d Cir. 2009)
I believe it may be easier to relate to the definition of 'victim' from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Definition of VICTIM
1: a living being sacrificed to a deity or in the performance of a religious rite
2: one that is acted on and usually adversely affected by a force or agent <the schools are victims of the social system>: as
a (1) : one that is injured, destroyed, or sacrificed under any of various conditions <a victim of cancer> <a victim of the auto crash> <a murder victim> (2) : one that is subjected to oppression, hardship, or mistreatment <a frequent victim of political attacks>
b : one that is tricked or duped <a con man's victim>
Thinking about these definitions and how they relate to you, the victim, is a start to dealing with your situation.
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