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Sunday, July 19, 2009

Ind. Gov't. - "Victims still waiting for help Thousands of claims for aid from state sit unpaid" [Updated]

That is the headline to this lengthy, front-page story today in the Indianapolis Star, reported by Tim Evans, Mark Alesia and Heather Gillers. Some quotes:

When Hoosiers are the innocent victims of violent crime, the state has a fund to help them with such things as funeral costs and counseling or to cover lost wages.

But the state's promise of help all too often becomes a cruel and exasperating wait -- one that victims' advocates say is akin to punishing the innocent a second time.

An Indianapolis Star investigation found that the agency that administers the fund is understaffed and ill-equipped and slow to enact recommended reforms. The result is that thousands of Hoosiers wait -- and wait -- for help from a fund that now has a backlog of more than three years.

The Star found:

The state agency, the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, acknowledges it has not processed the "vast majority" of the more than 3,500 claims filed since January 2006, leaving thousands of victims waiting to find out whether they will get help. The ICJI "cannot determine" how many of those claims it has paid. A state audit earlier this year said none had been paid.

The state's antiquated system for processing and tracking applications is so bad that officials cannot provide basic information, such as the exact number of pending applications and a list of payments made since 2005.

Indiana has a staff of just three to administer the program, resulting in the highest caseloads per worker among the 44 states that responded to an inquiry by The Star. The director of Iowa's program called the Indiana staffing level "nuts."

A November 2007 report commissioned by the ICJI -- which cost almost $150,000 -- found claims were resolved differently depending on the person assigned to the case, not established policy. But the ICJI still has not produced the recommended policies-and-procedures manual.

Many Indiana victims don't bother to seek assistance through the fund because of the long wait and hassles associated with applying. Others aren't even aware the help is available -- a shortcoming targeted this year by a bill in the legislature. That bill died without a hearing. * * *

T. Neil Moore, the ICJI's executive director, said his agency is working to eliminate the backlog.

"Is it bothersome?" Moore asked. "Sure it is. Are we sitting on our heels not doing anything about it? No. We're working very diligently on correcting the system."

He said some issues had been addressed, but that the ICJI would need as much as $1 million for a modern computer system. He has applied for a grant to pay for the new technology and hopes to have problems corrected by the end of the year.

When The Star relayed its findings and asked for comment from Gov. Mitch Daniels, his spokeswoman, Jane Jankowski, responded via e-mail: "We do not have a comment for your story. I understand you've spoken to ICJI, and they've talked to you about the efforts they have ongoing." * * *

State lawmakers created the compensation fund in 1978 to help innocent victims of violent crimes with medical bills, lost wages, counseling, funeral costs, legal fees and other related expenses.

The program is administered by the Victim Compensation Division of the ICJI, but nearly all the money for violent-crime victims comes from the federal government.

The fund paid out nearly $1.2 million in its most recent fiscal year. But, again, virtually all of that was for claims filed more than three years ago.

Indiana lawmakers set a $15,000 cap on reimbursements from the fund and made the state the "payer of last resort." That means the state waits until all other potential payment sources -- from insurance policies to court settlements to neighborhood fundraisers -- have been exhausted before victims are reimbursed for any qualifying, uncovered expenses.

The approach, Moore says, is one factor in the long delays that Indiana victims face.

Many other states get around that roadblock. They make upfront payments, then recover any overpayments when a victim is paid from another source.

Louisiana, which is also a payer of last resort, routinely gets needy victims money the same day they ask for it through an emergency application process.

Louisiana's Crime Victims Reparations Program last year expedited nearly 400 applications, sending out checks to victims within two hours.

"Bureaucracy doesn't rule here," said Bob Wertz of the Crime Victims Reparations Program. "This is a true service."

Moore said he was not sure Indiana could pay any sooner, as long as other payment options were pending, without legislative changes. However, the consultant's report indicates it can and even states that "ICJI proposes they shouldn't wait to pay . . . " * * *

Moore said the ICJI does some outreach, but most of the burden falls on police, prosecutors and victims' advocates, some of whom have grown weary of the program.

"We gave up (helping victims seek reimbursement). Some things are just not worth beating your head about," said Ann DeLaney, executive director of the Julian Center shelter in Indianapolis.

"The thing that irritates me the most is that this holds out a false hope," she said. "It says the state cares and wants to help you get back on your feet, and then basically pulls the rug out from under them."

Moore said he has not heard such complaints.

"When I look at the product the team is putting out in that unit," he said, "and the amount of work they're putting out, I think their performance is superior."

This ILB entry from June 21st, headed "Troubled database delays aid to victims" quotes from a similar report in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette.

The FWJG story explains that:

According to state law, the fund is fueled by government grants and a percentage of court fees, work release money, and restitution from criminal cases, and 75 percent of punitive damage awards in civil cases.
The earlier ILB entry also has links to the State Board of Accounts audits.

The story also shows that a month ago, Mr. Moore gave a similar response as in today's Star story regarding when the situation would improve:

T. Neil Moore, the institute’s executive director, said the backlog of claims is the result of a faulty database that officials hope will be fixed either late this summer or early in the fall. The institute – which has a history of lagging behind on payments out of the fund – has been playing catch-up and getting money to eligible people who made claims before 2006, Moore said.
In a related matter, readers may recall this March 3rd ILB entry involving Indiana's punitive damages allocation statute, IC 34-51-3, and Marion County Judge Dreyer's ruling in John Doe v. Father Jonathan Lovill Stewart.. From the Star story of March 3rd:
The Indiana Supreme Court hasn't ruled directly on the punitive damage limits the General Assembly approved in 1995. But it has addressed another part of the law, upholding in a 3-2 ruling in 2003 a provision requiring successful plaintiffs to cede 75 percent of punitive damage awards to the state. The Indiana Violent Crime Victim Compensation Fund gets those funds.
BTW, a check of the Clerk's docket does not show that Judge Dreyer's ruling has been appealed.

[Updated] See also this 7/21/09 Indianapolis Star editorial, headed "No justice for victims of crime."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on July 19, 2009 11:43 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts | Indiana Government