Victim blaming is one demeaning and devaluing act of putting the victim of a crime as being responsible, in part or in full for a crime or harm that actually affects them. It portrays the victim as being responsible for their own harm caused by another person. The blame emanates in the form of unexpected or negative social responses from the mental health, legal, medical professionals. This negative response can also be from the media or the immediate family as well as other friends and people he relates to. The responses towards victims of crime are often founded on the misunderstood positions taken by others, especially the outside spectators. This lack of understanding will then lead the observers to believe that the victim actually deserved to have faced the harm that befell them, or categorizes them as individuals with low self-esteem who are out to intentionally look for violence. These blames and unfriendly social conditions often make it difficult for the victims to cope with conditions for which they are blamed.The act of victim blaming has adverse effects on the victim and the society. It leads the victims not being interested in reporting further similar crimes hence increase in such crimes in the society. The victims who are blamed get distressed hence less likely to report such further crimes since they fear getting into secondary victimization through blame on similar crimes. This stand by the victim will also negatively affect the willingness of witnesses to testify, the zeal of the authorities to execute effectively cases and pursuing offenders, will also affect the possible recommendation by the judges and prosecutor in apportioning incarceration, and a jury's decision to convict (Roberts K., 2016).

There are instances where the jury has effectively determined that the victim contributed to the crime that befell them. This is a condition where the victim makes possible, through intentional or unintentional omission of care, the occurrence of a crime. Some typical examples are leaving one's car open and yet they are aware it is prone to theft like the 2000 Honda Civic, this is referred to as facilitation. Precipitation also refers to instances where the victim, in a significant measure, contributes to the rime. Provocation is when the victim is held responsible than the perpetrator for instance in a fight that beaks out between the two (Karman, 2012).

Discussion 2

There are various factors that can increase the likelihood of an individual to be victimized in a given crime scenario. There are various factors of lifestyle that can create opportunity for a crime to be committed hence likelihood of victimization. Such are;

Demographics- research ahs is that victimization rates are higher among the young adults and the adolescents, among the African-Americans, among the married couples, people who live in inner cities and among men. There is need hence to consider, deeply the other facilitating factors for the victimization for those in the above mentioned categories (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, n.d).

Economic status- it is noted that more crime seems to be prevalent in poorer neighborhoods, though no community is immune to crimes, the lower socioeconomic...

The offenders are also seen to be more in such lower economic areas hence increasing the chances of a victim running into an offender. One hence needs to choose where they live and if they happen to live in lower economic zones, then they need to be responsible for being guardians of security. If one lives in such neighborhoods then they are putting themselves more at risk of crimes hence prone to victim blaming.
Social activities- there is need for one to profoundly choose the social activities they engage in to avoid possible crimes meted on them. The type of activities, the timing, the place of occurrence and the people with whom one does such activities as well as the context within which such social activities take place are important factors. It is a fact that the more social an individual is, the more they put themselves in circumstances and activities that expose them to crimes, to more possible offenders and lowered guardianship.

Week 2,Discussion 1

The media has been all along a partner in the investigation process particularly in sensitive cases. In significant measure they have assisted in the investigation of victimization but in other instances the media has hindered, intentionally or otherwise, the investigation of victimization. As a matter of fact, in many instances they have facilitated the victimization or victim blaming through their assertions and reporting.

Through their reporting of details on a crime or the offender as well as the victim, there are possible inferences by the media of the victim's responsibility in the crime committed, typically in sexual assault cases. The way the media reports significantly affects the perception and feeling of the reader, either to blame or empathize with the victim. When the media reports on what the victim were wearing, their weight, size height all work to demean the crime and highlight the responsibility of the victim in the crime. When the media overemphasizes on the period of time she endured the assault by the husband before finally being killed by the husband is in a way putting blame on the victim who should have left the relationship much earlier, yet this is what the media has traditionally done.

However, most of the contemporary media has significantly evolved to help in the avoidance of victimization and also to aid in investigation into victimization. In their reporting, these media houses have tried to present both sides of the story, treated victims with respect and dignity, blurred out or avoided gruesome images, left the families of the victim in peace while grieving, respected privacy requests by the victims and their families, they avoid painting the victims in bad light just for the sake of making news, they have avoided glorifying violence and have avoided showing victims blood or body bag.

The criminal justice system has also significantly improved their approach in protection of the victims through hiding of their identity by banning publications, particularly child victims or witnesses and the sexual assault victims. The justice system has also ensured possibility of concealing identity and voice of the victims who may be appearing in court…