RD373 - Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund 2009 Annual Report - July 1, 2008 – June 30, 2009


Executive Summary:
Citing the Commonwealth’s “moral responsibility” to provide financial assistance to victims of crime, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund (CICF) was established by the Virginia General Assembly in 1977 to pay unreimbursed expenses of innocent victims of crime who had suffered physical or emotional injury or death (§ 19.2-368.1, Code of Virginia). The fund is administered by the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission.

For over thirty years the Fund has assisted victims of crime and their families by easing the financial burden that crime often creates, providing relief in the form of reimbursement for medical expenses, lost wages, funeral expenses, relocation, counseling costs and other “necessary and reasonable” expenditures incurred by the victim. As of July 1, 2007, claimants are eligible for awards up to the statutory maximum of $25,000 for compensable expenses (a $10,000 increase over previous years, a legislative change enacted in the 2007 General Assembly session). By law, CICF is the payer of last resort, assisting victims with expenses that are not covered by any other source. While the Fund does take collateral resources into account, assistance from the Fund is not income-based. Since its inception, the Fund has processed over 30,000 claims from Virginia victims of violent crime.

In order for a victim to meet the Fund’s eligibility requirements, the crime must occur in Virginia or against a Virginia resident in a state, country, or territory that does not have a compensation program. The crime must be reported to law enforcement within 120 hours unless good cause for the delay can be shown. A claim must be filed with the Fund within one year of the occurrence of the crime unless good cause exists for not doing so. The claim must have a minimum value of $100. The victim must fully cooperate with law enforcement and must not have engaged in illegal activity or contributed to his or her injuries in any way. Apprehension and conviction of the offender are not prerequisites for a crime victim’s CICF eligibility.

New this fiscal year, the Fund began reimbursing the evidence-collection expenses related to sexual assault forensic examinations through its new SAFE Program (Sexual Assault Forensic Examination Payment Program). This program addition arose in conjunction with changes made to § 19.2-368.11:1 of the Virginia Code last year as part of the state’s effort to be in compliance with the federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Paying these expenses allows CICF to maximize fund reimbursement via the federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), bringing additional dollars to crime victims in the Commonwealth.

The monies awarded to victims of crime in conjunction with compensation claims are not funded through state tax dollars. CICF is funded by court fees, assessments on offenders, and restitution as well as federal grant funds to supplement monies available to victims of violent crime generated by court fines at the federal level. CICF’s new SAFE Program, however, does receive General Fund dollars via monies designated to the Virginia Supreme Court to reimburse for sexual assault evidence collection expenses.