The V.I. Law Enforcement Planning Commission has been awarded $579,000 by the U.S. Department of Justice for the territory's crime victim assistance program.
The Crime Victims Fund is financed by fines and penalties paid by convicted federal criminals and is used to support numerous local victims services agencies, such as domestic violence shelters, children's advocacy centers and rape crisis programs.
In fiscal year 1999, state and territorial crime victim assistance programs will receive a national total of $238,136 million in funding.
"People who break the law should pay for the harm that they caused," U.S. Attorney James Hurd said Friday in a released statement. "Under this program, convicted federal criminals will help pay for critical services for victims.
"This is justice– plain and simple. We will continue to aggressively collect fines from federal offenders so that victims of crime and their families may receive the assistance they need and deserve," he said.
