The following example is a sample Victim Impact Statement after an individual has been battered. This sample can be used as a guide to show what points need to be stressed when writing a Victim Impact Statement.
To Whom It May Concern,
I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to disclose the emotional impact that this occurrence has had on me and my family. In particular the emotional stress and anxiety that xxxxxxxx has caused my children.
I am a victim of a violent crime, but more importantly my children have become victims as well. They have continually witnessed the constant environment of intimidation created by xxxxx and now have witnessed her brutal attack on me on December 7, 2008. It breaks my heart that my children have been exposed to such angry and aggressive behavior by an adult.
My 6 year old daughter xxx appears to be suffering the most. The night the assault took place she asked me, “How will xxx (our newborn) eat if xxx kills you?” These are words that literally brought tears to my eyes. Words that a mother should never have to hear her child utter. Words that disappoint me so much because I could not protect her from the abuse that she witnessed. Now, an innocent 6 year old little girl is afraid that her step-brother’s mother is going to kill her mommy. She was so fearful that evening once we arrived home that she went around to all the doors to make sure they were locked. I assured her that everything was going to be alright, and that xxxxx would not be able to do anything to me. She was worried about what would happen the next time we picked up xxxx. I told her that we would begin meeting at a safe place where xxxxx would not be allowed to get close to us.
Once again though, I failed to protect my children from the unstable behavior of xxxxx even at “the safe place”. After the incident on Dec. 28 when xxxxx approached my vehicle with me and the children in it and began knocking continuously on the windows, my daughter has become so frightened of her that she does not want to go with us anymore to pick up or return her brother.
Because my husband provides all the transportation to and from visits, we have taken advantage of that travel time and use it as “family time. We generally talk about our previous week and catch up with one another and the activities that have taken place. After we pick up xxxx we all go out to eat for a nice “family dinner”. Now that xxxx is too frightened to go with us, we are no longer able to spend that quality family time in the car together or have a family dinner right after we pick up xxx.
Because of the emotions that xxxxx has created in my children they both have been seeing a counselor, xxxxxx of CSS, to help them work through some of the anxiety and fear that they have regarding xxxxx. Once again, xxxx seems to have been most affected.
Raising a blended family can be difficult at times but when one party shows more anger than love it is even more difficult to protect the hearts and minds of the children involved. I feel that xxxx is still a physical threat to me and my children and because of that ask the court impose a restraining order that would prohibit xxxxx from coming within a 10 foot radius of myself as well as my children. xxxxx has demonstrated an extreme lack of anger control and seems to be very unstable mentally going from one extreme of “nicey – nice” to abusive rage. Because of this I ask the court to order her to take a professional mental evaluation to be evaluated for any mental disorder. I also ask that she be ordered to take anger management classes along with possibly a parenting class since these incidents have taken place in front of not only my children but hers as well.
