Editing Victimology (section)

== Victim of a crime ==
In [[criminology]] and [[criminal law]], a victim of a crime is an identifiable person who has been harmed individually and directly by the perpetrator, rather than by [[society]] as a whole. However, this may not always be the case, as with victims of [[white collar crime|white-collar crime]], who may not be clearly identifiable or directly linked to crime against a particular individual. Victims of white-collar crime are often denied their status as victims by the social construction of the concept.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Croall |first1=Hazel |title=Understanding white collar crime |date=2001 |publisher=Open University Press |location=Buckingham, [England] ; Philadelphia |isbn=9780335204281}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=White-collar crime research: old views and future potentials: lectures and papers from a Scandinavian seminar |date=2001 |publisher=The National Council for Crime Prevention [Brottsförebyggande rådet] (BRÅ : Fritze [distributör] |location=Stockholm |isbn=9789138317204}}</ref>

The [[Supreme Court of the United States]] first recognized the rights of crime victims to make a [[victim impact statement]] during the [[Sentence (law)|sentencing]] phase of a [[Criminal law|criminal trial]] in the case of ''[[Payne v. Tennessee]]''.<ref>''[[Payne v. Tennessee]]'' {{ussc|501|808|1991}}.</ref>

A [[victim impact panel]], which usually follows the [[victim impact statement]], is a form of community-based or [[restorative justice]] in which the crime victims (or relatives and friends of deceased crime victims) meet with the defendant after conviction to tell the convict about how the criminal activity affected them, in the hope of [[Rehabilitation (penology)|rehabilitation]] or [[Deterrence (psychology)|deterrence]].{{citation needed|date=April 2025}}

=== Theories ===
[[Richard Quinney]] has argued "the victim" is a [[social construct]] because in order for a person to be labeled a victim, some societal agreement needs to exist. Societal power dynamics affect collective perceptions of victimization. [[Nils Christie]] classifies "ideal victims" as those most likely to obtain “the complete and legitimate status of being a victim” when harmed. Christie writes that this is most likely to occur when the victim is perceived as weak, was participating in a reputable activity, not seen as accountable for playing a part in their victimization, and the offender is large and evil and not known to the victim.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Norgaard |first1=Jordana |last2=Roebuck |first2=Benjamin |date=2023-03-01 |title=14.2 Theories of Victimisation |url=https://kpu.pressbooks.pub/introcrim/chapter/14-2-theories-of-victimization/}}</ref>