When Darryl Walker was killed in March, his mother said had she known about the Illinois Crime Victim Compensation Act she would not have cremated her son. “I didn’t know the state offered burial assistance to poor families and no one at the funeral home told about it either,” said Yvette Aikins, 67, Walker’s mother.
“Everybody was telling me to cremate him because it’s cheaper than a funeral and because he did not have any life insurance, I had no choice.” Aikins is one of many cashstrapped families in Illinois who struggle to bury a loved one who did not have life insurance. But Secretary of State Jesse White, whose office manages the program, said that’s why the Illinois Crime Victim Compensation Act is available.
“Since 1973, the state has helped crime victims and their families pay for medical, burial and other expenses covered under Crime Victim Compensation Act,” White said. The Compensation Act allows violent crime victims of all ages who have little or no life or medical insurance coverage to seek up to $27, 000 from the state to help pay for an array of expenses. The state will pay up to $5,000 for funeral expenses.
But the program is not just for those who are killed. It also provides monetary support to victims of crime as long as the victim did not contribute to their injury or death, said Matthew Finnell, court administrator for the Illinois Court of Claims, which distributes the funds. The program will also pay up to $1,000 a month for medical and rehabilitation expenses and lost wages.
If a person is injured or killed as a result of trying to commit a crime, they are not eligible to be compensated by the program. But, if they were not committing a crime, incarcerated or on parole or probation at the time of their injury or death, they would be eligible. Victims of rape, domestic violence, arson, drunk driving, stalking, and child exploitation are also eligible for compensation. In 2007 the Court of Claims paid $27 million to victims.
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