NCJ Number
101206
Journal
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume: 76 Issue: 1 Dated: (Spring 1985) Pages: 208-250
Date Published
1985
Length
43 pages
Annotation
This comment examines the design, costs, and benefits of the Federal Witness Protection Program (WPP) from 1970 to the present, with a focus on the need to balance protection of witnesses with the safety and security interests of the public.
Abstract
While the WPP has proven an effective weapon in the fight against organized crime, by removing witnesses from their previous lives and shielding them, the program has also given them the means to escape existing civil and criminal obligations. WPP officials have consistently failed to enforce child custody and visitation obligations and to evaluate the witnesses' credibility or threat of harm to the community in which they are placed. Further, many protected witnesses are themselves criminals and have committed new crimes since their admission to the WPP. While the Government has faced numerous civil and criminal suits for injuries suffered at the hands of WPP witnesses, the courts repeatedly have found that Federal witness selection and protection decisions are discretionary acts for which the Government cannot be liable. While the 1984 Witness Security Reform Act does limit Government discretion and impose limited liability, an equitable program must include a mandatory assessment of a witness' risk to the community, hold witnesses accountable for their civil obligations, and impose liability on the Federal Government when protected witnesses commit illegal acts. 254 footnotes.