Crime Victim Services Newsletter 

Welcome to the first edition of the Crime Victim Services Newsletter. This quarterly publication is designed to keep you up to date on crime victims’ compensation and new initiatives and programs which can better serve all vulnerable populations and compensate victims of crime around the state of Ohio.

The Crime Victim Services (CVS) section of Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s Office consists of two sides that work hand in hand to serve Ohioans – the compensation side and the assistance side.

The compensation side of CVS is made up of attorneys, economic loss investigators, field investigators, claims examiners, and support staff. 

When a claim comes in, it is assigned to a field investigator who investigates the crime and checks to make sure the victim does not have any disqualifying criminal history. At the same time, the claim is assigned to an economic loss investigator who collects all bills and calculates the amount of a potential award, which is determined through a preset formula.

The claim then goes to an attorney who applies the law to make sure the crime fits the statutory definition of “criminally injurious conduct,” confirms that the applicant does not have any disqualifying conduct, and issues an award for all expenses allowed by state law.

While the compensation side of CVS helps with awards for expenses incurred by victims, the assistance side funds projects and programs that serve the citizens of Ohio. The assistance side is composed of grant specialists, grant evaluators/fiscal auditors, a victim services development director, and victim services coordinators.

Crime Victim Services assistance is responsible for the administration of the State Victims Assistance Act (SVAA) and the federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grant programs. The funds are provided to eligible crime victim assistance programs operating in public and non-profit agencies in the state of Ohio. Together with the State Victims Assistance Advisory Board, CVS staff makes funding recommendations that are submitted to the Attorney General for final consideration.