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Innocent witness rent9/11/2023 Critics of the genre argue that true crime is exploitative and voyeuristic, and there’s no doubt that’s part of its allure. And yes, they’ve also unraveled the twisted tales of heinous murders, heartless scams and wanton corruption for the sake of entertainment. The filmmakers behind these productions have solved crimes, freed the wrongly accused, exposed the guilty and given voice to victims and survivors. The choices run the gamut in terms of subject matter and tone, tackling all matter of narratives: following the gumshoe detectives of “The First 48,” exposing miscarriages of justice in “Who Killed Malcolm X?,” chronicling crimes so bizarre it’s hard to believe they qualify as true in “Sasquatch.” Here, selected by yours truly and compiled from Times coverage, are 50 of the best true-crime documentary films and TV series you can stream right now. So, like the authorities - at least the honest ones - we’re stepping in to help. ![]() From HBO Max to A&E, true-crime programming is more prevalent than illegal weed dispensaries. Federal Witness Security Program and related topics, check out the links on the next page.Cult murders, lottery heists, deadly dating apps, killer clowns: We’re in the midst of a true-crime wave, and television is the culprit. With the protection provided by the program, witnesses can testify and then disappear when the trial is over, and the criminals they testify against are almost always convicted. Without it, many witnesses would never come forward or would be killed if they did. Today, the Witness Security Program is essential to the prosecution of hundreds of cases. The Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 contains regulations and provides general information about the Witness Security Program, setting forth most of the current procedures by which a government attorney may apply for the services of the program in order to protect a witness from dangers that may be related to the witness's testimony. This new Act provided for the protection of certain relatives and associates. Nearly 15 years later, the powers of the Attorney General with respect to the Witness Security Program were expanded by the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984. Soon this program became known as WITSEC, an abbreviation of "witness security." Shur suggested that the Marshals Service protect, hide and relocate witnesses and fund the program. It says that the Attorney General can provide for the protection of witness in "whatever manner deemed most useful under the special circumstances of each case." This law gave the Department of Justice wide latitude to accommodate what attorneys deemed necessary to protect witnesses.Īlthough the law now provided for a program to protect witnesses, many details of the program and the day-to-day administration still had to be formulated. Within this law was the section Title V: Protected Facilities for Housing Government Witnesses, which outlines the basic tenets of what would become the Witness Security Program. The Witness Security Program was authorized as part of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970. Blakely took Shur's ideas for a witness protection program and inserted it into the crime bill, according to Shur's book, "WITSEC." Robert Blakely, a member of McClellan's staff, had drafted much of this bill. McClellan of Arkansas introduced a large crime bill. ![]() In the next section, we'll look at how the Marshals Service gets a witness to and from court without incident. ![]() Once in the program, the Marshals Service provides 24-hour protection while they are in a high-threat area, including pre-trial proceedings and court appearances. Name changes are done by the court system just like any name change, but the records are sealed. However, according to the book "WITSEC: Inside the Federal Witness Protection Program, co-written by the program's creator, Gerald Shur, witnesses are advised to keep their current initials or same first name. Arrange for counseling and advice by psychologists, psychiatrists or social workers when the need has been substantiatedĪs far as choosing a new name, witnesses can have their pick.Provide identity documents for witnesses and family members whose names are changed for security purposes.Provide subsistence payments on average of $60,000 per year.Obtain one reasonable job opportunity for the witness.
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