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The Victim Services Division supports and assists survivors of crime through the efforts of Victim Assistance Coordinators (VACs). These compassionate professionals serve as a vital resource to help victims navigate the criminal justice system and ensure victims’ rights are respected. To contact Victim Services, please call 713-274-0250.

Victim Assistance Coordinators

(VACs) serve as liaisons between victims and prosecutors to help guide victims through the criminal justice process. VACs provide victims with their rights as a crime victim, attend court proceedings with victims if requested, keep victims updated on the status of their case as requested, and answer any questions or concerns victims may have about the criminal justice system. VACs can also provide victims with community resources upon request and assist with completing an application for the Texas Crime Victims Compensation Program.

As a victim of a violent crime, you have the right to complete a Victim Impact Statement, which is a form used to gather information about how the crime has affected you physically, financially and emotionally. This form follows the defendant through the criminal justice system and can be used by the judge when determining sentencing and also by the Board of Pardons & Paroles when determining parole eligibility. A victim may also give a verbal Victim Impact Statement in court as testimony during the trial and after the defendant has been sentenced (also known as Allocution or Right to Speak).

Your VAC can provide you with a Victim Impact Statement, assist you with completing the form and provide preparation and guidance during testimony and allocution. For more information about your rights as a crime victim, please visit:

Texas Constitution Rights of Crime Victims, Article I Sec. 30

Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Chapter 56a

Victim Resources

Victim Notification Everyday (VINE)

Texas Attorney General Crime Victims' Compensation

Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Victim Services Division

Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)

United Way Greater Houston
Call: 211

Parents of Murdered Children Houston Chapter
713-522-9045

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)
281-590-2222

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