The Division shall not make an award unless it determines
eligibility based on the following:
(a) The victim suffered personal injury or
death as a result of a "criminal act" under the laws of the State of Wyoming.
No act involving the operation of motor vehicle, boat, or aircraft which
results in injury or death constitutes a crime for the purpose of this act
unless the injury or death was recklessly or intentionally inflicted through
the use of the vehicle, boat, or aircraft, or unless the act constitutes a
violation of
W.S.
31-5-233.
(b) In determining whether a criminal act has
occurred, the Division shall take into account the following sources of
information:
(i) Description of the act as
related by the victim on the application form
(ii) Any reports prepared by the appropriate
law enforcement agencies;
(iii) The
law enforcement certification form prepared by law enforcement in response to a
request from the Division;
(iv) Any
formal charging documents filed against the perpetrator, including the criminal
complaint arrest warrant and information on any judgement and sentence or other
final order entered against him;
(v) Any other information that the Division
deems to be relevant, including but not limited to, provocation, consent,
participation in an illegal activity or behavior on the part of the victim
which, directly or indirectly contributed to his injury or death, and the prior
case history of the victim which may also include matters pertaining to the
victim's medical history, and whether the victim cooperated with law
enforcement authority or showed a compelling health or safety reason why they
could not cooperate;
(vi) The
Division may consider, but is not bound by, the categorizing of the offense by
the reporting law enforcement agency or prosecuting attorney;
(vii) In all cases the Division shall
exercise its discretion in determining whether a crime has occurred;
and
(viii) The application for
compensation must be filed within I year from the date of the injury or death
of the victim or within the extension of time the Division has allowed for good
cause.
(A) Good cause in determining whether
a victim has satisfied the requirement to report a crime to law enforcement,
the Division may consider the victims age, physical condition and psychological
state, and any compelling health or safety reason that would jeopardize the
well being of the victim. The Division may waive the report to law enforcement
or the 1 year filing date if good cause is shown.
(c) Cooperation with Law
Enforcement
In determining whether a victim reasonably cooperated with
law enforcement the Division may consider the victims age, physical condition
and psychological state and any compelling health and safety reasons that would
jeopardize the well being of the victim.
(i) Reasonable cooperation with law
enforcement by the victim may include but not be limited to the following:
(A) providing law enforcement with a true,
accurate and complete statement of the circumstances that led to the
crime;
(B) participating in the
investigation of the crime to assist law enforcement with the identification of
a suspect;
(C) participating in
prosecution procedures including deposition and trail testimony as
requested;
(D) Sexual abuse victims
shall be deemed to have reasonably cooperated with law enforcement if the
victim undergoes a sexual assault forensic exam;
(d) Wrongful Act. The injury to or
death of a victim cannot be attributed to his or her own wrongful
act.
