Through its Crime Victim Services program, Missouri offers up to $25,000 in compensation to innocent victims of crime and eligible family members.
- Medical expenses
- Mental health and grief counseling
- Crime scene clean-up
To secure reimbursement, victims must comply with strict requirements and deadlines. Some victims and families may also be eligible to pursue justice through a civil lawsuit.
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Michigan's Crime Victim Services office provides up to $25,000 in financial support to victims of violent crime and eligible family members, helping to defray out-of-pocket expenses incurred as a direct result of the crime. Operated by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Crime Victims Compensation program is funded through fines and fees levied against convicted criminal offenders, along with federal grant money.
Eligibility Requirements For Victims Assistance In Michigan
Michigan's victim assistance program is open to innocent victims of violent crime, including sexual assault, committed in Michigan, including residents of other states who suffered injures in Michigan. Some family members may also be eligible to apply for financial compensation, for example, surviving dependents of a homicide victim.
Many "Good Samaritans" are also eligible to apply for compensation, in the event that an attempt to prevent a crime or apprehend a criminal suspect resulted in physical injuries.
Out-Of-State Crimes
Michigan residents who were injured due to a crime committed outside the State may or may not be eligible. Generally, state-based compensation programs are designed to compensate victims who are injured within the state that operates the fund.
If you were injured outside Michigan, you should first turn to the compensation fund operated by the state in which you were injured. If that state doesn't have its own program, you may be able to secure reimbursement through Michigan's fund.
Compensation is also offered to Michigan residents who were injured in terrorist acts committed outside the country.
Limits To Eligibility
Some people aren't eligible to apply for compensation:
- people who committed or were an accomplice to the crime
- people who caused their own injuries or were doing "something illegal and dangerous at the time of the injury"
- people who are currently incarcerated (you may be able to apply for reimbursement after your period of incarceration ends)
How Michigan's Crime Victims Compensation Fund Works
The fund acts as a payer-of-last-resort; it only covers crime-related expenses that aren't reimbursed by other sources of funding. "Crime Victims Compensation," as the State's Department of Health and Human Services, "always pays last."
Victims are required to pursue reimbursement first through their additional funding sources, including insurance policies and government benefit programs. Michigan's Crime Victims Compensation Board then steps in to pick up the remaining pieces, providing payment for those expenses that weren't, or couldn't be, covered by the other sources of funding.
Covered Expenses
Michigan's crime victim compensation fund offers reimbursement for a limited number of crime-related expenses. As we've already noted, the maximum award available to any one applicant is capped at $25,000 by Michigan State law.
In the list below, where you'll find every eligible expense covered by the program, you'll also note that several individual expense types come with their own internal limits.
- Eligible medical expenses
- Mental health counseling - 35 visits maximum
- up to $80 per hour - licensed therapist or counselor
- up to $125 per hour - licensed psychologist or physician
- Lost wages or financial support (for surviving dependents of a homicide victim) - $350 per week maximum
- Funeral, burial and cremation expenses - $5,000 maximum
- Grief counseling (for the spouse, child, parent or sibling of a homicide victim) - $500 maximum
- Crime scene clean-up - $500 maximum
The fund does not pay benefits for property damage, property loss or pain and suffering. Relocation and travel costs, along with living expenses, aren't covered, either.
And unlike most state compensation programs, Michigan's fund doesn't reimburse the dependents of an injured victim for their lost financial support. Compensation for lost financial support is only available in cases of homicide.
Minimum Claim Amount
There's also a minimum for claims submitted to the State. Michigan's Crime Victim Compensation program only considers claims that rise to at least $200 or, alternatively, two continuous weeks of lost earnings or financial support. This requirement doesn't apply to victims who were retired or disabled at the time of crime, along with sexual assault victims.
Deadlines For Reporting & Filing
Michigan's compensation program is structured, in part, to encourage more victims to come forward and report crimes. To secure compensation, victims must report the crime in which they were injured within 48 hours of its occurrence, with exceptions for child victims and "good cause" delays in reporting.
There's also a deadline for filing your application, 1 year from the date of injury. In cases of child abuse, which may not be reported to police for years after the harm was inflicted, victims have within 1 year of filing a police report to apply for compensation, but no later than their 19th birthday.
Applying For Financial Support
In order to submit a claim, you'll need to fill out an application. You can find English, Spanish and Arabic versions of the application form here. Complete the form carefully. Applications should be filled out as fully as possible to prevent any delay in processing.
Every claim for compensation you make should be supported with additional documentation. Attach copies of itemized medical, burial or counseling bills. If you've been unable to work due to your injuries, enclose a written statement of disability from your doctor and 2 to 3 pay stubs that you received directly before the crime.
Once you're done, you can send the completed application and supporting documentation to:
Crime Victim Services Commission Grand Tower, Suite 1113 235 S. Grand Avenue PO Box 30037 Lansing, MI 48909
If you need help completing your application, call the Crime Victim Services office's toll free number, which is open only to victims, at 877-251-7373 or 517-373-7373.