Victim Assistance
Restoring hope in the midst of trauma
Port St. Lucie Police Department’s Victim Assistance Unit provides crises response to victims of violent crimes upon request. Our staff consists of three full time civilians who have been trained through the Office of the Attorney General. They are available to provide support and referrals for resources within our community.
Who is a Victim?
A victim is a person who suffers direct or threatened physical, psychological, or financial harm as a result of the commission or attempted commission of a crime or delinquent act or against whom the crime or delinquent act is committed.
The term victim includes the victim's lawful representative, the parent or guardian of a minor, or the next of kin of a homicide victim, except upon a showing that the interest of such individual would be in actual or potential conflict with the interests of the victim.
Your Constitutional Rights as a Victim of a Crime
In Florida, victims of crime have constitutional and statutory rights. The following pamphlet downloads provided by the Port St. Lucie Police Department is a summary of your constitutional rights pursuant to Article I, Section 16 of the Florida Constitution. When citizens become involved with law enforcement, the court system or other agencies as a victim, they may need assistance, dealing with a variety of emotions or have questions regarding the process. Our office has a Victim Services program to help with short-term crisis intervention, referrals to community agencies and with filing victim compensation claims.
Summary of your Constitutional Rights
- To preserve and protect your right to achieve justice, and ensure a meaningful role throughout the criminal and juvenile justice systems
- To have your rights and interests respected and protected by law
- To due process, fair treatment, and respect for your dignity
- To be free from intimidation, harassment, and abuse
- To be reasonably protected from the accused and any person acting on behalf of the accused within the judicial process
- To have the safety and welfare of you and your family considered when setting bail and pretrial release conditions
- To prevent the disclosure of information or records that could be used to locate or harass you or your family or which could disclose your confidential or privileged information. To prevent disclosure, submit a Confidentiality Request, or ask the responding officer or your advocate to prevent the disclosure.
If you need victim/witness information, you may contact the Victim Assistance Coordinator at (772) 344-4331. Our unit is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Mail Address
Port St. Lucie Police Department
Attention: Victim Assistance Unit
121 SW Port St. Lucie Blvd., Bldg. C
Port St. Lucie FL. 34984
Resources
The Victims Rights Brochure(PDF, 720KB) provides an overview of the criminal justice process and your rights within this process.
- What do I do now?(PDF, 122KB)
- What to expect form the grief process?(PDF, 101KB)
- Who is going to clean up?(PDF, 86KB)
- Fraud Scam Information: Action Checklist(PDF, 107KB)
- Fraud Scam Information: Recovery Checklist(PDF, 122KB)
- 211 Treasure Coast Brochure(PDF, 302KB)
- Victim Information & Notification Everyday Brochure(PDF, 795KB)
- Victim Rights & The Criminal Justice Process Pamphlet(PDF, 174KB)
- The Cycle Theory of Domestic Violence Pamphlet(PDF, 120KB)
- Sexual Battery: Victim's Rights and Services Brochure(PDF, 495KB)