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Court support for victims of crime

Going to court can be stressful, especially if you do not understand the legal process.

Knowing what you need to do, where you can get help and what is expected of you will reduce that stress.

This page includes information about:

Going to court as a witness

As a victim or witness of a crime, you may be asked to go to court if you:

  • experienced the violence
  • saw or heard something important to the case
  • were involved in another way.

Your evidence is important. It can help the magistrate or judge and jury decide what the truth is and make a fair decision.

Providing evidence in court

If the police charge the offender, you may be asked to appear in court to give your evidence in person.

This is called a:

If you are summonsed or subpoenaed, you must attend court.

If you do not attend court, you may be found guilty of contempt of court and a warrant may be issued for your arrest.

As a witness in court, the defence and prosecution lawyers may ask you questions about what you saw, heard and know. This is to:

  • confirm your version of events in your police statement
  • ensure the facts presented about the crime are correct
  • help the court come to a fair decision.

It is normal to feel nervous, frightened or worried about giving evidence in a courtroom. Let your police officer, court support worker, or prosecutor know if you are feeling afraid or need support when giving evidence.

Special Witnesses

If you are a ‘special witness’, arrangements can be made to help reduce the trauma of going to court to give evidence.

Special witnesses can include people who:

  • are under 16 years
  • have a disability and are likely to be
    • disadvantaged as a witness
    • suffer severe emotional trauma
    • be intimidated at a hearing
  • are witnesses to organised crime
  • are a victim or witness to domestic and family violence
  • are a victim of sexual assault.

The prosecutor must apply to the court for arrangements to be made for a special witness. A judge or magistrate will make a decision about the prosecutor’s application.

Arrangements may be made for special witnesses, so they are unable to see, or in some cases hear the defendant (the person who is accused of the crime). These may include:

  • pre-recording the evidence on video before the trial or hearing date
  • giving evidence from a remote witness room
  • putting up a screen in the courtroom.

Other arrangements may include:

  • having a support person with the witness in the courtroom or special witness room
  • closing the court to the public and the media so the witness only gives evidence in front of the people required to be in the courtroom.

Support during the court process

The court process can be stressful, especially if you have witnessed a violent crime. The following support services may be able to help you through court.

PACT

PACT provides free support to victims and witnesses going through a court process.

VictimConnect

Free counselling is available from VictimConnect to help you recover from the emotional and psychological impacts of experiencing or witnessing a crime.

Support for Mental Health Court matters

If you are a victim of an offence that has been referred to the Mental Health Court, additional support is available to you.

Queensland Health Victim Support Service is a free, statewide service providing specialised counselling, support and information for victims of crime when the person charged has been assessed as having a mental illness or intellectual disability.

Understanding how the courts work

Throughout your legal journey, your matter may move through the lower to the higher courts. Learn about navigating the court system as a victim or witness (PDF, 3.4MB).

Learn more about going to court and what the different Queensland Courts do.

Victims’ rights

As a victim of crime, you can expect government officers and victim service agencies, including the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, to follow the Charter of Victims' Rights.

This includes:

  • treating you with courtesy, compassion, and respect
  • limiting the contact you have with the offender in court
  • telling you about your rights
  • explaining what is required of you as a witness
  • letting you tell the court about the harm done to you—and make a victim impact statement.

Learn more about victims’ rights.

Victim impact statements

A victim impact statement is a written statement that describes how the crime impacted you and others.

The judge or magistrate can use your victim impact statement to consider the effects the crime has had on you when sentencing the offender.

If you are the victim of a violent crime, you can give a victim impact statement—but you don’t have to. Giving a victim impact statement is voluntary. If you choose not to give a victim impact statement, this will not impact their sentence.

A victim impact statement can explain how the crime has harmed you and affected your life. It can:

  • include supporting documents like medical reports, photographs or drawings
  • be written by someone else on your behalf if you can’t write it yourself.

Learn about how to write your victim impact statement or how to choose a support person (or be one) (PDF, 1.9MB).

You may have the chance to read your victim impact statement out to the court.

Apart from making a written victim impact statement, there are 2 other ways to tell the court about how the crime has affected you:

  1. The prosecutor can speak to the court on your behalf.
  2. The prosecutor can call you as a witness, so you can tell the court about the crime.

Support after the offender is sentenced

Victims' register

If the offender has been sentenced to prison or to a correction centre, you are entitled to apply for information about their sentence.

This can include:

  • details of the prison or correction centre where they are held
  • their security classification
  • when they apply for parole
  • when they are eligible for release.

You must be on a victims register to get this information.

There are 2 information registers depending on the age of the offender:

More information

Last updated:
12 April 2024
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