Crime Victims Compensation Board awards more than $545K to victims
TOPEKA – (August 10, 2023) – The Kansas Crime Victims Compensation Board awarded financial assistance to 236 victims of violent crime at its meetings during the second quarter of 2023, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach said.
The Board reviewed 245 new applications submitted by victims and approved $545,685.48 to be awarded to victims.
“While compensation cannot erase the trauma that victims experience, we hope that our support can alleviate the financial pressure faced by victims of crime,” said Kristen Czugala, Division Chief for Victim Services.
The Crime Victims Compensation program was established in 1978 to help victims of violent crime pay for unexpected expenses such as medical treatment, mental health counseling, lost wages, dependent support and funeral expenses.
This quarter, the compensation board helped pay for the funerals of 17 victims in Kansas. The board also assisted 23 victims in relocating to a safe place after experiencing violence at the hands of another. The individuals helped include a grandmother who received a quarterly payment to help with the expenses of raising her grandchildren whose mother was murdered. In another instance, the board helped pay up to $25,000 in medical expenses for a stabbing victim.
The state’s Crime Victims Compensation Board determines claims that are eligible for payment and how much money will be awarded to each claimant. Awards are limited to a maximum total amount of $25,000 with limitations of $7,500 for funeral and burial expenses, $5,000 for outpatient mental health counseling, $10,000 for inpatient mental health treatment and $1,500 for grief counseling for family survivors of homicide victims.
A portion of assessed court costs and fines, inmate wages, parole fees and restitution paid by convicted offenders provides funding to the program.
For more information about the Crime Victims Compensation program call (785) 296-2359 or visit the attorney general’s website at www.ag.ks.gov.