Victim's rights in Scotland: easy read leaflet

Your Right to Information

Reporting a Crime

If you report a crime to the police, they will give you a Victim Care Card. This gives you a copy of your complaint and gives you other useful information.

You can get more information about how your report will be handled in the Standards of Service for Victims and Witnesses.

Witnesses are people who might know about the case and might have to tell the court about it.

You can get a copy of this document from the organisations listed under "Who to Contact" at the end of the booklet.

Asking for Information about Your Case

You have the right to ask for information about your case from these organisations:

Police Scotland – even if the investigation is not taken forward, you can ask for information about this.

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service - if your case is not taken to court, you have the right to be told the reasons why and to ask for this decision to be looked at again.

The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service – can give you the court dates, the final decision of a court and the reasons for it.

Information on the Release of the Offender (Victim Notification Scheme)

The offender is the person who was found guilty of committing a crime against you. If they are sent to prison for 18 months or more, you can register with the Victim Notification Scheme.

The scheme means you can be told about when the person gets out of prison.

To register, you need to contact the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service who will give you a form to fill in and send to the Scottish Prison Service.