If you or someone you know has been the victim of crime, you know it is often difficult, if not impossible, to get proper help and redress. Though each year 30 million Americans are victims of crime, and about 6 million - roughly 20 percent - are victims of violent crime, our system of justice remains confusing and often unresponsive.First Get Mad, Then Get Justice, the most accessible, up-to-date, and comprehensive handbook for crime victims, is your advocate for the assertion of your rights. It is your guide to the resources you will need to get through this most difficult event in your life. As a crime victim, you may have seen your rights compromised or ignored by unfair plea bargains and inconsistent sentencing. You may have been cheated out of the opportunity to recover money for your losses, or you simply may not know who to turn to for answers to your basic questions. Author Charles G. Brown, a former attorney general, offers you step-by-step guidance on every aspect of finding emotional and financial support and gaining judicial remedy, starting with directions on whom to contact immediately after the crime has been committed, through what you should know about the law and the important factors affecting your specific situation.First Get Mad, Then Get Justice provides cutting-edge information on recent changes in legislation effected by the controversial and growing grass-roots victims' rights movement in America today. Over the past few years, eight states have changed their constitutions to give victims the right to participate in the criminal process, and to have those rights enforced. This book covers the latest rulings on everything from hate crimes, victims' rights related to bail, plea bargains, and parole to the mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse and many other critical issues. Those looking for the exact laws and the victim compensation allowances in their state will find all the facts readily available here. Under the section on financial recovery you will find complete details on third-party liability, which targets and holds accountable individuals or institutions whose negligence helped to cause the crime.First Get Mad, Then Get Justice is packed with essential information, charts, and directories listing national and state victims' rights organizations. The book details countless examples of cases won and lost and how the victim made a difference. "Victim participation," says Brown, "leads to a better system of justice." This practical and eye-opening guide gives you a map of that system and shows you how to successfully find your way through its winding paths. Read Less