Prosecutor’s office testing program that helps cover costs for crime victims
By Rachel McCrary, James Paxson
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GENESEE COUNTY, Michigan (WNEM) — A mid-Michigan prosecutor is reminding crime victims that his office has several services to help them through their trauma.
Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton wants everyone to know they have several professionals on hand to help crime victims in a variety of ways.
“I think it’s a great help to victims,” Leyton said.
Leyton said his office is among a handful testing the state’s new Victim Navigator program which helps cover out-of-pocket medical bills and other costs.
“Funeral bills counseling maybe loss of earnings and other types of things that might be directly related to being a victim of a particular crime,” Leyton said.
A state health department grant is financing the initiative. Leyton said this could also reduce the backlog of court cases.
“Certainly, if you had somebody that’s been assaulted. Hospitalized and we can help them with their medical bills and get them better so they can come to court, and they can testify that’s a big boom to moving the cases forward in the system,” Leyton said.
Victims of a crime that have suffered financial losses as a result can take advantage of this help.
“Now this could be another reason why they want to be a part of the system. And they want to achieve justice by both getting the perpetrator and perhaps getting the kind of restitution that they need because of the crime that was committed,” Leyton said.
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