Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 July 2024
In 1963 and 1964, New Zealand and Great Britain adopted the first modern crime compensation programs. These programs compensate for injury and death caused by a criminal attack upon an innocent victim. Although the reception given to these programs has been quite favorable and there have been additional adoptions by other jurisdictions, the total number of program adoptions remains small. New Jersey's adoption in October, 1971, brought the total number of program adoptions in the United States to six (New York Times, October 25, 1971: 28c). In addition, Nevada and New York City have adopted partial compensation programs called “citizenship” or “Good Samaritan” programs that compensate only those injuries or deaths incurred while assisting law enforcement officers or while attempting to prevent the commission of a crime or in trying to apprehend a criminal. This means that six general crime compensation programs have been adopted in the United States during the past six years. These program adoptions have been by California, New York, Maryland, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and New Jersey.