Summary of the Impact:
Many of us will become a victim of crime at some point in our lives, yet many victims chose not to report these crimes to the police. Ultimately, a large number of victims in Ireland are not engaging in the criminal justice system. Prof Shane Kilcommins, Dr Susan Leahy & Dr Eimear Spain from the Centre for Crime, Justice and Victim Studies (CCJVS) and the School of Law have sought to better understand this phenomenon with a view to understanding how best to engage with and support victims of crime, while also informing public policy and legislative reform. By focusing their research on the place of victims within the criminal justice system, the team is giving a voice to underrepresented minorities including victims with disabilities.
The systemic abuse that occurred in post-Independence Ireland firmly placed victimhood on the public agenda
By focusing their research on the place of victims within the criminal justice system, the team is giving a voice to underrepresented minorities including victims with disabilities. Their research has actively influenced public policy and legislative reform, and informed teaching and learning with the establishment of Ireland’s first module in victimology. The researchers have built a reputation for ‘cutting edge’ research in the area of victims’ rights and as being ‘very influential’ in highlighting the role of the victims as pivotal stakeholders.
Sustainable Development Goals
References to the research
The victim in the Irish criminal process
https://www.doi.org/10.7765/9781526153722
Authors: Shane Kilcommins, Susan Leahy, Kathleen Moore Walsh, Eimear Spain
Sexual Offending in Ireland: Laws, Procedures and Punishment
https://www.claruspress.ie/shop/sexual-offending-in-ireland-laws-procedures-and-punishment/
Authors: Susan Leahy and Margaret Fitzgerald O’Reilly
Sexual Offences Law: the Impact of Gender Stereotypes on Adjudications of Consent in Rape Trials in Ireland
http://dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781509917242.ch-001
Authors: Susan Leahy
Section 5 Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990 (Ireland)
http://dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781782259800.ch-060
Authors: Susan Leahy
The Domestic Violence Bill: A Good Start but Not Enough
Authors: Susan Leahy
Exploring the impact of the Victims’ Directive on service provision for victims of crime in Ireland
https://ulir.ul.ie/handle/10344/6689
Authors: Susan Leahy and Eimear Spain
Too Much Information? Regulating Disclosure of Complainants’ Personal Records in Sexual Offence Trials
https://ulir.ul.ie/handle/10344/7947
Authors: Susan Leahy
The Development of Victims’ Rights in Ireland
Authors: Shane Kilcommins, Susan Leahy, Eimear Spain
The Inclusion and Juridification of Victims on the island of Ireland
https://ulir.ul.ie/handle/10344/5355
Authors: Shane Kilcommins and Luke Moffet
Analysis of Text for the Final Review of the National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender Based Violence
Authors: Eimear Spain, Sarah Gibbons and Shane Kilcommins
Victims of crime with disabilities in Ireland; Hidden casualties in the ‘vision of victim as everyman
https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0269758014537149
Authors: Shane Kilcommins and Mary Donnelly
The corroboration warning in sexual offence trials: final vestige of the historic suspicion of sexual offence complainants or a necessary protection for defendants?
https://doi.org/10.1350%2Fijep.2014.18.1.442
Authors: Susan Leahy
Reform of Irish Rape Law: The Need for a Legislative Definition of Consent
https://doi.org/10.1350%2Fclwr.2014.43.3.0272
Authors: Susan Leahy
Victims of crime with Disabilities in Ireland
https://doi.org/10.1350%2Fclwr.2014.43.3.0272
Authors: Shane Kilcommins
An International Review of Legal Provisions and Supports for People with Disabilities as Victims of Crime
https://ulir.ul.ie/handle/10344/3895
Authors: Shane Kilcommins, Claire Edwards and T O’Sullivan
Access to Justice for People with Disabilities as Victims of Crime in Ireland
https://ulir.ul.ie/handle/10344/3930
Authors: Claire Edwards, Gill Harold and Shane Kilcommins
The Needs and Concerns of Victims of Crime in Ireland
http://www.csvc.ie/en/CSVC/Pages/WP10000001
Authors: Shane Kilcommins et al