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Victim Assistance

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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.

"Marsy's Law" Information(PDF, 155KB)
Learn what benefits are available: Bureau of Victim Compensation Brochure.

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.