Victim Impact Statements

Most states allow victims and/or victims' survivors to speak during the sentencing phase of trials as to the pain they have suffered as a result of the crime. Such proclamations, called “victim impact statements,” are extremely controversial. Some legal experts posit that victims and/or victims'survivors have the right to speak publicly about the harm they have endured; other legal experts suggest that such statements encourage the trier of fact to base sentencing decisions on emotion, as opposed to fact. The presence of victim impact statements in capital trials has caused considerable debate, as social scientific research has suggested that juror, defendant, and victim characteristics play a significant role in how such declarations are perceived and, consequently, in juror decision-making processes in death penalty cases. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that victim impact statements are constitutional; however, social scientists have issued certain recommendations as to how the prejudicial nature of such statements can be minimized.

Victim impact statements outline the harm they have suffered as a result of the defendant's actions. Since the enactment of the Victim and Witness Protection Act (1982), most states allow the trier of fact (i.e., judge or jury) to take such statements into consideration when determining the sentence of the defendant. Victim impact statements may detail the following: (a) the physical, psychological, and financial impact that the crime has had on the lives of the victim and/or the victim's survivors; (b) the victim or victim's survivor's opinions about the crime and/or defendant; and (c) in murder cases, information about the personal characteristics of the deceased. In most states, victim impact statements cannot characterize the defendant in negative terms, nor can victim impact statements describe the type of punishment the victim or victim's survivors feel is appropriate for the defendant.

The presence of victim impact statements in the sentencing phase of trials is an extraordinarily controversial issue. The primary debate stems from the fact that victim impact statements are not evidence; rather, they simply serve as a context through which the jury should interpret the impact of the crime. Some legal experts have argued in favor of the admissibility of victim impact statements, suggesting that they give victims and victim's survivors a voice in court proceedings, allow for psychological healing and closure, promote sentences that are more reflective of the suffering endured, humanize the person who has been harmed, encourage other victims to come forward, and enhance the perception of procedural justice. Other legal experts have argued against the admissibility of such statements, positing that they foster inconsistencies in sentencing procedures, expose judicial proceedings to undue public pressure, and encourage jurors to base decisions on issues that are irrelevant to the facts at hand (i.e., emotion).

In no type of case are victim impact statements more debated than in capital (i.e., death penalty) trials. Two Supreme Court rulings are pivotal in discussing the impact that victim impact statements are allowed to have in death penalty cases. In Booth v. Maryland(1987), the Court concluded that the victim impact statements created a “constitutionally unacceptable risk” and violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The Court ruled that in a death penalty case, the jury's decision must be based on the characteristics of the defendant and/or crime and not on the impact of the crime on the victim's survivors. The Court posited that allowing victim impact statements to influence the jury's decision could lead it to base the sentence on juror sentiment, as opposed to the facts presented in court.

...