Campaign Aims to Raise Awareness of Crime Victim Assistance and Compensation

 
Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced the launch of a public awareness campaign to educate New Yorkers about the services and compensation available from the state to assist innocent victims of crime and their families. The "Help, Healing and Hope" public service announcements, which feature survivors of crime describing the assistance they received from the Office of Victim Services, are now airing on broadcast television stations in 10 markets across the state.

 "New Yorkers help New Yorkers in their time of need, and this campaign will raise awareness of the state resources available to help crime victims through the healing process," Governor Cuomo said. "We want all residents to know they are not alone and, in their darkest hour, help is available to them."
 
Five, 30-second PSAs began airing today in 10 television markets: Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, Corning, Elmira, Plattsburgh, Rochester, Syracuse, Utica and Watertown. The Office of Victim Services is partnering with the New York State Broadcasters Association on the five-week campaign, which runs through Sunday, Oct. 30.  

Office of Victim Services Director Elizabeth Cronin said, “Our support reaches more crime victims every year, but we know there are still some who are unaware of help that is available through the agency. Our hope is that these powerful stories will both inform and empower individuals to seek out the assistance from OVS or one of the many service providers we fund.”

The PSAs feature survivors of crime and advocates describing how the agency and the services it funds helps rebuild lives, and have been distributed to 45 stations that are members of the Broadcasters Association. They can be viewed here.

The Office of Victim Services provides a safety net for individuals and/or their families who have been victimized through no fault of their own and have no other means of assistance. The agency can pay medical, dental and mental health bills, lost wages and support, and burial and funeral expenses, among other types of assistance. Compensation is funded through fines, fees and surcharges paid by certain offenders convicted in federal and state courts, not taxpayer dollars.  

New York State is the only state with no cap on medical or counseling expenses, which means individuals who sustain serious, life-altering or traumatic injury, as happened to David Snowden and Riley Gilbert, can receive help as long as they need it. 

Syracuse-based Vera House and Cattaraugus Community Action in Salamanca are two of the 223 programs funded by OVS that provide counseling, crisis intervention, advocacy and legal help, among other services, to crime victims in every county in the state. These community-based providers receive more than $43.8 million from the agency, which also provided nearly $20 million in compensation to individuals and families in 2015.  

In the aftermath of last week's explosion in Chelsea, the Office of Victim Services, working with the FBI, connected victims to OVS-funded service providers, which will help those individuals file claims for compensation for medical bills and other expenses and also provide direct services, such as crisis intervention and counseling. 

Source: Press Office, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo