Victims of Violent Crime can request a meeting with their offender
Winter 2022/Fall 2021
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Victim Offender Dialogue (VOD) is one of the many victim-centered programs made available by the State Board of Pardons and Paroles through the Georgia Office of Victim Services. VOD is a program enabling victims of violent crime to meet with the offender in the case. VOD meetings are safe, structured meetings between the victim and the offender. Victims can ask important questions that only the offender can answer.
“This program is so beneficial to victims of violent crime in Georgia. I encourage registered victims to contact us if they’re interested in taking part,” states Terry Barnard, Chairman of Georgia's Parole Board.
Participants in the program have routinely stated they finally feel their voice was heard, the true impact of the crime has been shared, and they are able to close that chapter of their lives and move forward with a weight lifted off of their shoulders.
Now, Georgia has more VOD facilitators following training conducted by JUST Alternatives, a non-profit specializing in victim-centered practices in corrections.
Victim Offender Dialogue programs in the entire country,” states Wilson.
“The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles fully supports crime victims through the direct victim service programs provided by the Georgia Office of Victim Services,” says Chris Barnett, Executive Director of Georgia's State Board of Pardons and Paroles.
“As an agency, we will continue to engage and assist victims throughout the parole consideration process and beyond. Victims, crime survivors, are important stakeholders in the post-conviction criminal justice process and we must make sure they have a voice, and that their voice is clearly heard," added Barnett.
Crime victims can register with the Georgia Office of Victim Services to receive notifications regarding an offender.
Contact the office at 404-651-6668 or 1-800-593-9474. Email to [email protected].
“The needs of crime victims or crime survivors in the aftermath of violent crime are unique and varied,” says Jon Wilson of JUST Alternatives.
“Many victims wish they could express directly to the offenders a measure of the grief and anguish they carry. The Georgia Office of Victim Services’ Victim Offender Dialogue Program offers a rigorously victim-centered opportunity for them to do that, with the help of well-trained facilitators,” Wilson states.
Wilson says the program works well in Georgia.
“Georgia’s commitment to the needs of all crime victims has created one of the most robust victim-centered