Whether we are aware of it or not, all of us at one time or another have been a victim of a crime. Perhaps one of the most graphic crimes that many experienced took place on September 11, 2001. Thousands of human lives were lost, and thousands of people were injured. Some died directly from the impact of aircrafts on buildings and landscapes in three states. Others were killed or injured in the rescue and recovery efforts that began immediately thereafter. Yet others were close family and friends of the direct victims, and clearly all were impacted by their losses. Finally, the changes in how the country responded to these crimes, including policy and procedural changes enacted for travelers at airports, border inspections, and other homeland security-related changes, have undeniably affected millions over the past 20-plus years. For many others in the United States, the prevalent fear is being the victim of a sexual assault. While there is by no means any shortage of these assault crimes, the more common fear victimologists identify is a violation of one’s personal safety from various categories of theft, including identity theft, home invasion, and vehicle theft (Saad, 2023).

There are four basic questions to be answered in this field of victim study:

• Who is a victim and how can a victim be identified or known?
• What is the nature and extent of their victimization?
• What caused the victimization to occur?
• How may the victim be best assisted by first responders, courts, and society?

The common denominator among the individuals, groups, and populations being discussed in this chapter is that they have all been victimized in some way. It is critically important to realize that crime victims my experience a triad of impacts—physical, emotional, or economic—and sometimes in tandem. For example, if a person is sexually assaulted, the victim of a robbery, or is murdered, that person and others will be affected in various ways. If family members residing in an apartment experience a home invasion, the entire group experiences victim trauma at some level. Finally, if an environmental spill takes place in a community, impersonal entities, such as businesses, schools, and government agencies, can experience immediate and ongoing victimization that may continue for many years. Moreover, victimization can occur on two levels. First, a direct victimization or primary victimization occurs when the initial and usually the most immediate effect of crime victimization happens. Indirect victimization or secondary exposure to crime victimization extends the effects of suffering to family and close friends of the victim. Even large groups can be considered indirect victims when crimes are perpetrated against businesses, the government, industries, or the environment. Such harm can last for years and, in some cases, it will be felt by generations to follow.