THIRD PARTIES: VICTIMS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM by Leslie Sebba. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1996. 446 pp.

Reviewed by Susette M. Talarico, Department of Political Science, The University of Georgia.
 

In 1974 Robert Martinson reviewed research studies on the rehabilitative effect of prison treatment programs and concluded that "nothing works." Although Martinson's study and indeed the rehabilitative character of prison treatment programs themselves were later called into question, the "nothing works" rejoinder touched public and political nerves and contributed to an explicit disavowal of positivist sanction goals. To some degree, Sebba's analysis of the role of the victim in contemporary criminal justice and his review of related law and policies could be summarized in similar terms. In short, after reading THIRD PARTIES one is tempted to conclude that none of the action taken in behalf of crime victims has worked. Such a conclusion, as Sebba himself warns us, would be premature and short-sighted. How he comes to this conclusion and what we learn about the more victim-oriented law and policies in contemporary criminal justice in the process add up to an important, albeit not entirely readable, book.

THIRD PARTIES: VICTIMS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM is directed to three, major objectives: (1) to offer a taxonomy of victim welfare reforms; (2) to review existing evidence or knowledge; and (3) to set out parameters for policy evaluation. Joining all of these objectives is Sebba's interest in offering "an integrative analysis of the field." (12) Underlying these objectives is the author's insistence that a considerable number and range of victim reforms have been enacted, that there is compelling evidence on the victim's rather minor role in traditional criminal justice, and that there is no theoretical foundation for current public policy.

Building on these three premises, Sebba offers a useful taxonomy of victim reforms, a comprehensive synthesis of related research, and a scheme for the evaluation of public policy. Concluding efforts offer a more theoretical integration, largely culled from the author's earlier work. The taxonomy, literature review, and criteria for policy evaluation all constitute important contributions, while the theoretical integration forces the reader to think about the general viability of our legal system and the symbolic uses of politics.

THIRD PARTIES: VICTIMS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM is divided into four main sections. In the first Sebba provides the necessary background information by describing victim-oriented reforms (Chapter 1) and the victim's role in the criminal justice system (Chapter 2). Here, Sebba documents the range of public policy directed to victims of crime and also substantiates the oft-repeated complaint that victims are relatively unimportant in contemporary criminal justice. In the second part of the book, Sebba offers a scheme for evaluating victim-oriented policy, first by outlining three, central criteria: coping needs, perceived justice needs, and fundamental principles of justice (Chapter 3). Coping needs refer to those efforts to deal with the consequences of victimization, perceived justice needs consist of attitudes toward the legal and criminal justice systems, while fundamental principles of justice include more ideological and theoretical objectives. Subsequent chapters (4 - 5) in this part focus on each of the three criteria in detail. In the third and longest part of THIRD PARTIES, Sebba offers an evaluation of five, general types of victim reforms. These include the desert model of sentencing and restitution (Chapter 7), efforts to enhance the victim's role in trial procedures (Chapter 8), remedies outside of criminal justice (Chapter 9), other victim-assistance and "bill of rights" reforms (Chapter 10), and alternate dispute resolution as applied to criminal victimization (Chapter 11). In the last part of the book (IV), the author presents three, short chapters in which he evaluates the aforementioned victim reforms in broader, conceptual terms. In the first of these chapters (12), Sebba directs attention to the respective roles of criminal and civil law and procedures, to formal and informal processes, and to the two models invoked in the chapter title: adversary-retribution and social defense-welfare. In the second chapter in this section (13) Sebba briefly speaks to third-party liability and "good Samaritan" proposals, while in the last (14), he offers some concluding observations on victim reforms generally and the likelihood of other, related change.

Sebba is well suited to the encyclopedic nature of the objectives of THIRD PARTIES. With expertise in both criminology and law, he is able to speak in an informed way about research on attitudes and behavior as well as the substance and process of legal systems. As one of the founding editors of a journal on victimology and as the author of considerable research in that field, he is well suited to the challenge inherent in the aforementioned synthesis and integration. Moreover, Sebba brings a decided and important comparative cast to the analysis as he is well versed in several legal traditions and draws informative comparisons from one country to another.

Perhaps the most noteworthy contribution of THIRD PARTIES is the fact that the author stimulates the reader to think about some rather basic issues related to law, politics, and the problem of crime in society. While reviewing the disparate reforms designed to address the needs of victims of crime, for example, Sebba reviews the arguments offered in defense of the so-called "victim bill of rights." Here, he notes that advocates argue that such legislation is designed to "make the victim whole again." (272) Commenting that "(a) victim can rarely in fact be restored to his or her previous condition of life," Sebba not only questions the foundations of such legislation but forces the reader to think about what law can and cannot accomplish.

Similarly, THIRD PARTIES clearly demonstrates that much of the victim reforms in contemporary criminal justice carry more symbolic than substantive consequences. Although he explicitly touches on related issues at the end of the book, albeit in a cursory fashion, it is a theme that runs through the major policy assessments provided in Part III. Like the defendant-directed "law and order" reforms that have been a public policy fixture since the late 1960s, victim reforms serve to placate concerned citizens (a cynical interpretation) and/or to call attention to real problems (a more positive characterization).

In the final analysis, THIRD PARTIES offers a vivid reminder of the challenge that crime presents to contemporary society. As Sebba convincingly details, this challenge has to be addressed with explicit attention to the underlying principles and theoretical frameworks related to law and against empirical evidence on the results and consequences of specific policy initiatives. In this regard, politicians of all persuasions would be well advised to take heed. I doubt, though, that THIRD PARTIES will be used by legislative and executive policy makers, and this constitutes the book's major, and probably inevitable, limitation. Simply put, this is a book for academics. Sebba carefully reviews the findings and methodological limitations of any number of research efforts and offers a compelling analysis of the related evidence against more distinctly theoretical issues. But the work is not accessible to policy-makers and the more general public. This is a shame in a real sense, for Sebba has much to teach them. One only hopes that some bright and conscientious staff member or assistant will find the book and study it carefully.
 

Martinson, Robert. "What Works? Questions and Answers About Prison Reform." PUBLIC INTEREST 24 (Spring, 1974): 24.