Abstract
Discusses three Northern Ireland Court of Appeal decisions concerning the role of victim impact reports (VIRs) on sentencing in sexual violence cases, and illustrating how courts may be unable to rely on victims' accounts of the harm they suffered because the experts' reports were unreliable. Details key features of the cases, the use of VIRs as evidence-based harm, and why improved guidance on their use is needed in Northern Ireland.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 478-484 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Criminal Law Review |
Volume | 2016 |
Issue number | 7 |
Early online date | 11 May 2016 |
Publication status | Published - Jul 2016 |