Hear Me! Podcast: Recent Episodes
Post-Conviction Victim Advocacy Program
Welcome to Hear Me!: My Voice, My Story the Post-Conviction Assistance for Victims in Hawai’i Podcast that provides a platform to hear real victim stories, orientation of victim rights & needs, and identification of services and resources in our community that support victims of crime. This podcast is produced by the Post-Conviction Victim Advocacy Program with the support of the Crime Victim Compensation Commission and the Hawai’i Paroling Authority.
The purpose of the HEAR ME! Podcast is to bring awareness to victims, survivors, justice professionals, advocates, and communities about the opportunities to participate in processes that affect their safety and healing journey. The goal is provide education & information to support victims of crime, as well as, the professionals and advocates in the courageous work they do to support victims of crime with resources and assistance.
These podcasts were produced by the State of Hawai’i Crime Victim Compensation Commission with support by Grant Award No. 2019-V2-GX-0017 awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, through the State of Hawai'i Department of the Attorney General. The purpose of the Hear Me! Podcast is to bring awareness of and give a voice to justice professionals, advocates, victims, survivors, and the community. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in these podcasts are those of the contributors and do not represent the official position or policies of the Hawai'i Department of Public Safety, the Hawai‘i Paroling Authority, the Crime Victim Compensation Commission, the State of Hawai'i Department of the Attorney General or the U.S. Department of Justice.
A critical element to providing support to victims/survivors’ post-conviction, is understanding what the unique concerns victims/survivors have or may have once there has been a sentence or disposition. It is important to acknowledge that victim/survivor concerns often change from what they were during the pre-conviction phases. Some victim/survivors can clearly identify their concerns, while others may benefit from advocacy at the time of sentencing or post-sentencing to help identify new or changing concern. Concerns may range from common or “universal” issues to very individual or unique concerns based on the individual victim/survivor’s situation. In this podcast, our host, Lydia Newlin will talk with nationally renowned victim advocate and consultant, Jeralita Costa about the importance of understanding identifying the concerns of victims post-conviction. Using that understanding, can then provide guidance in helping identify victim needs, which can then assist in providing the most effective advocacy and support to those victims we serve.
The Honolulu Police Department’s Sex Crimes Unit is led by Victim Witness Specialist, Alyson ‘Ally’ Alfonso. Victim Witness Specialists at the Honolulu Police Department work with the victim, detectives and investigators within the police department. The Sex Crimes Unit only provides support for sex assault cases. The Specialists can report to the scene of the event to support the victim or meet the victim at the police state. The Specialists work with the victim to prepare them for the interview they will have the detective and then follows up with the victim after the interview to provide support and referrals as needed. These referrals could include services at the Sex Abuse Treatment Center (SATC), emergency housing, medical support or beginning the Temporary Restraining Order process.
The Department of Public Safety (PSD), Restitution and Victim Services (RAVS) office provides information, support, and referral assistance to crime victims and the general public. RAVS is also responsible for processing court-ordered restitution deductions from inmates while they are incarcerated. RAVS works closely with the correctional facilities to ensure that restitution is sent timely to the Crime Victim Compensation Commission (CVCC) for payment to victims. The services they provide include, answering questions about the criminal justice process, assisting with inquiries related to court-ordered restitution, assisting with registering to receive automated notification through the Hawaiʻi Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (HI-SAVIN), referrals to community services and resources including crime victim compensation, and finally to advocate on behalf of victims who are being harassed by or receiving unwanted contacts form inmates.
The Hawai'i Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification (SAVIN) system is powered by the Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) system. Hawai'i SAVIN offers victims and concerned citizens free, anonymous, and confidential access to timely information and notification 24-hours a day, 365 days a year on the custody and parole status of offenders under the jurisdiction of the State Of Hawai'i’s Department of Public Safety. Registered users will receive notification via email, text, and/or phone call. Live operator assistance is always available to address your questions. Hawai'i SAVIN, is a service provided by the Department of Public Safety and supported by victim witness assistance programs throughout the State.
The Post-Conviction Victim Advocacy Program (PCVAP) was developed in partnership with the Hawai’i Paroling Authority (HPA) to provide direct services and support to victims during the paroling process. This introduction episode of Hear Me, will provide listeners an overview of the program mission and vision as well as synopsis of the services provided by the Post-Conviction Advocate. Dawn has since left CVCC as the Post-Conviction Victim Advocate to take on a director position with a local behavioral health agency. We want to thank her for all she has done to make the program what it is today. Connect to the program through email: post-convictionadvocate@hawaii.gov or phone 808-587-1142.
Hosts introduce new Post- Conviction Victim Advocate Leanna Bair. They also discuss the “warm hand-off,” a process aiming to provide seamless services to victims through collaboration of victim service providers. . Connect to the program through email: post-convictionadvocate@hawaii.gov or phone 808-587-1142.
Nonohe Botelho is an Independent Consultant to victims and surviving families of homicide and other violent crimes. In this episode, Nonohe tells her story as a surviving mother of her eldest son who was shot and murdered in front of her home. Nonohe has become her own advocate and fought to increase the murder laws in the state of Hawai’i.
The main goal of the Victim/Witness Kokua Services is to provide specialized services to victims/witnesses of violent crime who are going through the criminal justice system. These crimes include as saults, sexual assaults, terroristic threatening, kidnapping, reckless endangering, spouse/partner abuse, child abuse, and elder abuse. Surviving family members of homicide, manslaughter, and negligent homicide cases receive support services and case information. Meet Episode 3 guest, Dennis Dunn, the Director of Victim Witness Kokua Services. Contact information: www.honoluluprosecutro.org/victimwitness-kokua-services or call us at (808) 768-7401.