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Statutory Authority: 11 Delaware Code, Section 9004(a) (11 Del.C. §9004(a))1 DE Admin. Code 301The Department of Justice Victims Compensation Assistance Program proposes to amend existing Rule 25.0 by deleting "$8,500" and substituting therefor "$5,000". This amendment would reduce the ceiling on payment for funeral and burial expenses. The Victims' Act provides at 29 Del.C. §9002(9) that "pecuniary loss" in instances of death of the victim shall include funeral and burial expenses.2.1 The definitions set forth in 11 Del.C. Ch. 90 are hereby adopted and incorporated by reference in these Rules. "The following words, terms and phrases, when used in these Rules, shall have the meanings ascribed to them except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:"Agency" shall mean the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program, or VCAP."Appeals Board' shall mean the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program Appeals Board, or VCAPAB.‘Child’, shall mean an unmarried person who is under eighteen years of age, and shall include the step-child or adopted child of the victim, or child conceived prior to, but born after, the personal injury or death of the victim."Council" shall mean the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program Advisory Council, or VCAPAC.(1) any specific offense set forth in Chapter 5 of Title 11 of the Delaware Criminal Code as the same appears in Chapter 497, Volume 58, Laws of Delaware, if the offense was committed after the effective date of said Criminal Code and contains the characteristics of murder, rape, unlawful sexual intercourse, unlawful sexual penetration or unlawful sexual contact, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping, arson, burglary, riot, robbery, unlawful use of explosives, [or] unlawful use of firearms, stalking, endangering the welfare of a child, driving under the influence of any alcohol or drug or driving with a prohibited blood alcohol concentration, or hit-and-run, or any act of domestic violence or abuse;(2) any specific offense set forth in Chapter 3, Title 11 of the Delaware Code if such offense was committed prior to the effective date of the Delaware Criminal Code, as set forth in Chapter 497, Volume 58, Laws of Delaware, and contains the characteristics of murder, rape, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping, arson, burglary, robbery, riot, unlawful use of explosives, or unlawful use of firearms;(5) An act of terrorism, as defined in 18 U.S.C. §2331, committed outside, or inside, the United States against a resident or domiciliary of this State.‘Dependent' shall mean a person wholly or substantially dependent upon the income of the victim at the time of the victim's death, or would have been so dependent but for the incompetency of the victim due to the injury from which the death resulted, and shall include a child born after the death of such victim;"Executive Director" shall mean the Executive Director of the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program. [§9005(b)]‘Guardian' shall mean a person, governmental instrumentality, or private organization entitled by law or legal appointment to care for and manage the person or property, or both, of a child or incompetent;‘Incompetent' shall mean a person who is incapable of managing his own affairs, as determined by the Board or by a court of competent jurisdiction;‘Personal Injury' shall mean bodily harm, mental, emotional, or psychological harm, and shall include pregnancy of the victim resulting from the crime.‘Pecuniary Loss' in instances of personal injury shall include medical expenses, including psychiatric care, non-medical remedial care and treatment rendered in accordance with a religious method of healing; hospital expenses; loss of past earnings; crime scene cleanup, moving expenses, essential personal safety property, insurance deductibles, and loss of future earnings, including, but not limited to, reimbursement for vacation, sick, and compensatory time because of a disability resulting from such personal injury. ‘Pecuniary Loss' in instances of death of the victim shall include funeral and burial expenses and loss of support to the dependents of the victim. Pecuniary loss includes any other expenses actually and necessarily incurred as a result of the personal injury or death, but it does not include property damage. Pecuniary loss", as defined in §9002, shall include only the net amount of enumerated expenses actually and necessarily sustained as a result of personal injury or death occurring due to a crime. Compensation for increased rent or mortgage payments due to relocation of the victim as a result of the crime shall be limited to the net amount of any increase.“Secondary Victim” shall mean any parent, stepparent, grandparent, son, daughter, spouse, sibling, half-sibling, fiancée, caretaker of the victim; any child who resides on a regular or semi-regular basis with any adult who is the victim of, or convicted of, any crime involving an act of domestic violence; the parents of a victim's spouse; or any other person who resided in the victim's household at the time of the crime or at the time of the discovery of the crime.‘Victim' shall mean a person who is injured or killed by the act of any other person during the commission of a crime as defined in this Chapter.3.2 A single member of the Appeals Board shall be contacted, and, if available, shall participate with VCAP in the review of an emergency claim pursuant to 11 Del.C. §9006(c)(1).3.3 Pursuant to 11 Del.C. §9006(c)(2), a single Appeals Board member shall, in conjunction with the Agency, determine the award for any claim exceeding $12,500.The Appeals Board shall have a seal for authentication of its orders, awards and proceedings, upon which shall be inscribed the words VICTIMS’ COMPENSATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM APPEALS BOARD, STATE OF DELAWARE.These rules shall be liberally construed to accomplish the purpose of 11 Del.C. Ch. 90, as amended, and the goals set forth in Rule 1.8.1 New rules may be adopted and any rules may be amended or rescinded by the Council at a regular or special meeting, pursuant to 11 Del.C. §9004(a).8.2 New rules, amendments, or revisions shall become effective pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Procedures Act, 29 Del.C. Chapter 101.9.4 All requests for official information, copies of official records, or opportunity to inspect public records shall be made to the Executive Director. Public access to crime victims’ case files and records maintained by VCAP and the Appeals Board shall be governed by the Freedom of Information Act, 29 Del.C. Ch. 100, and specifically 29 Del.C. §10002(g)(14).VCAP, the Advisory Council, and the Appeals Board shall maintain confidentiality of records in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act, 29 Del.C. Ch. 100, and specifically 29 Del.C. §1004(g)(7).13.1 All claimants must fully cooperate with investigators or representatives of VCAP in order to be eligible for an award. In the event that cooperation is refused or denied, VCAP may deny a claim for lack of cooperation.13.7 Under the circumstances set forth in subsection (13) of 11 Del.C. §9009, as amended, a victim or secondary victim may apply for reimbursement for: the cost of mental health counseling services, not to exceed fifty sessions; reasonable expenses incurred due to attendance at criminal proceedings; and expenses for essential personal safety property, not to exceed $1,500; provided that such costs were incurred within one year before or two years after the date of the reopened investigation, judicial or administrative proceeding, release, or execution.17.4 The Appeals Board shall have the discretion to exclude plainly irrelevant, immaterial, insubstantial, cumulative, and privileged evidence. [Source 29 Del.C. §10125(b)(3) and (4). Former Rule 6.0]21.1 All questions relating to denial of a claim shall be determined in accordance with Chapter 90, Title 11, Section 9010, of the Delaware Code.22.1 All questions relating to dependency shall be determined in accordance with 11 Del.C. Ch. 90 §9002 which reads as follows:The aggregate award for funeral and burial shall not exceed $8,500.00 $5,000.00.For the purposes of section 9024(c), up to $1,200.00 may be paid from the victim's compensation fund on behalf of each child victim of crime for reasonable costs incurred for psychological assessments and short-term counseling.30.0 Payment of Dental Claims30.1 Expenses for dental services [including periodontal and orthodontic care and oral surgery] shall be paid on behalf of the victim to a licensed dental practitioner at a rate and in an amount set by VCAP. If VCAP accepts a claim, the dental practitioner shall accept the VCAP payment as payment in full, and may not attempt to collect from the victim or third parties any amount exceeding the amount of reimbursement made by VCAP. VCAP payments shall be accompanied by a notice that provider acceptance constitutes acknowledgment of payment in full.30.2 VCAP will pay a dental provider at the rate of 80% of the usual and customary charge for such services. When a third party has made payment, and the victim is responsible for a co-payment, VCAP may reimburse for amount of the co-payment. VCAP may pay a lesser amount, if payment under this section would exceed a statutory or regulatory cap.
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