Victim protection and victim support

The European Victim Protection Directive aims in particular to provide crime victims with adequate information, assistance and protection and to enable their participation in criminal proceedings. The policy requires respectful, sensitive, individual, professional and non-discriminatory treatment.

The Victim Protection and Assistance Unit helps to achieve this goal. Together with other authorities and independent agencies, we are working on implementing the victims’ information rights laid down in the directive even more effectively. This does not only concern the first contact, but runs through the entire criminal proceedings. The focus is not least on the right of victims to understand what is happening and to be understood. In the spirit of the directive, we pursue proactive victim protection that reaches out to people on a low-threshold basis. Non-governmental counselling institutions are indispensable partners for this.

Have you been the victim of a crime?

Against this background, we would like to introduce you to the guidance offered by Opferhilfe Berlin e.V.. It is intended to provide initial orientation for victims of crime and to give helpful tips on the first steps to take after experiencing a crime, such as reporting it to the police. You can find the guide here.

We would also like to refer to the victim guide of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection. It is intended to provide guidance in possible future criminal proceedings and help victims to exercise their rights. To this end, it explains how criminal proceedings proceed from the first questioning at the police station to the main hearing in court and the situation after the verdict, and what position and rights an injured person has in criminal proceedings. You can find the victims guidelines here.

Do you need information on the special protection and assistance services in the state of Berlin?

Psychosocial process support

Particularly stressed victims have the possibility to make use of psychosocial process support with the aim of emotional and psychological support in the criminal proceedings. It includes qualified care, provision of information and support throughout the entire investigation and criminal proceedings. For victims of violent and sexual offences as well as child and adolescent victims, psychosocial support can be ordered by the court and is then free of charge. You can find more information here.
You can find a list of psychosocial process facilitators recognised in Berlin here.

Victim-offender mediation

Within the framework of a victim-offender mediation, victims of criminal offences can conclude an agreement on reparation in a personal conversation with the accused person. The discussion is moderated by a conflict counsellor and takes place in Berlin at the Social Services of the Judiciary. You can find more information here.

Protection in the event of domestic violence

In cases of domestic violence, the Berlin police can quickly avert danger in order to protect the victim by expelling the person suspected of the crime from the shared flat and at the same time banning him or her from entering this flat and certain other places where the victim must regularly stay for a maximum of 14 days. Further information on police protection against violence in Berlin can be found here.
The Protection against Violence Act also gives victims of domestic violence the possibility to obtain a long-term family court protection order. Above all, long-term contact and proximity injunctions can be imposed on the perpetrator. Thus, the injunction against harassment and stalking via long-distance communication can also be ordered. You can find more information on family court violence protection in Berlin here.
Further general information on help and support in cases of domestic violence in Berlin can be found here.

Victim protection services

Victims of crime need special help and support in coping with psychological, physical and material damages. In addition to the Victims’ Commissioner of the Land of Berlin, victim protection institutions have a variety of support services available to provide the best possible assistance. The corresponding offers in Berlin are manifold and range from free and confidential forensic medical documentation of injuries in the violence protection outpatient clinic to a witness care room in the court to the mediation of needs-based support offers through “pro-active”, the service point for victims of crimes. You can find more information about the support services in Berlin here.
You can find the Charité’s violence outpatient clinic here.
You can find the witness support in the Moabit Criminal Court here.