In the past 20 years, the victims' rights movement has gathered momentum, often succeeding in its attempts to turn the tables on laws and legislation that traditionally loaded the scales of justice in favor of criminal defendants.Victims' Rights explores this movement and its implications in detail for the first time. It answers questions vital to every U.S. citizen such as: What is the criminal justice system? What is the role of the victim in that system? How has this role changed in recent years? What are society's attitudes toward victims' and defendants' rights? Why is there a push for a constitutional amendment regarding the rights of victims?This volume answers all these questions and more. It is rounded out by a chronology, biographical sketches, documents, court cases, legislation, an annotated directory of victim and defendant advocate organizations, and a general index for easy access to further research.