Section 9002 - Definitions For purposes of this chapter:
(1) "Agency" means the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program.(2) "Appeals Board" means the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program Appeals Board.(3) "Child" means an unmarried person who is under 18 years of age, and includes the stepchild, foster child, or adopted child of the victim, or child conceived before, but born after, the personal injury or death of the victim.(4) "Claimant" means victim, secondary victim, dependent, or any other person filing a claim under § 9012 of this title on behalf of a victim, secondary victim, or dependent.(5) "Council" means the Victims' Compensation Assistance Program Advisory Council.(6) "Crime" means any of the following: a. Any specific offense set forth in Chapter 5 of this title, if the offense was committed after July 1, 1973, 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, unlawful use of firearms, stalking, or endangering the welfare of a child.b. Any specific offense set forth in former Chapter 3 of this title, if such offense was committed prior to July 1, 1973, and contains the characteristics of murder, rape or any other sexual assault or sexual abuse, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping, arson, burglary, robbery, riot, unlawful use of explosives, or unlawful use of firearms.c. Any specific offense occurring in another state, possession, or territory of the United States or in violation of the United States Criminal Code, in which a person whose domicile is in Delaware is a victim, if the offense contains the characteristics of murder, rape or any other sexual assault or sexual abuse, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping, arson, burglary, riot, robbery, unlawful use of explosives, or unlawful use of firearms as set forth in Chapter 5 of this title.d. Any specific act of delinquency by a child, which if committed by an adult would constitute a specific offense set forth in Chapter 5 of this title, and contains the characteristics of murder, rape, unlawful sexual intercourse, unlawful sexual penetration or unlawful sexual contact, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping, arson, burglary, robbery, riot, unlawful use of explosives, or unlawful use of firearms.e. 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.f. Any offense under the Criminal Code or the Motor Vehicle Code containing as an element the act of driving under the influence of alcohol or any drug or driving with a prohibited blood alcohol concentration, vehicular homicide in any degree, vehicular assault in any degree, operation of a motor vehicle causing death, leaving the scene of an accident involving personal injury, or operation of a vehicle causing serious physical injury to a vulnerable user.g. Any act that contains the characteristics of domestic violence or abuse.h. Any act that contains the characteristics of human trafficking as defined in § 787 of this title.(7) "Dependent" used as a noun, means a person wholly or substantially dependent on the income of the victim at the time of victim's death, or would have been so dependent but for the incapacity of the victim due to the injury from which the death resulted, and includes a child born after the death of the victim.(8) "Executive Director" means the executive director of the Agency, except in § 9003 of this title.(9) "Guardian" means any person, governmental instrumentality, or private organization who is entitled by law or legal appointment to care for and manage the person or property, or both, of a child or person who is incapacitated. .
(10) "Pecuniary loss" means any expenses actually and necessarily incurred as a result of personal injury or death resulting from a crime, but it does not include property damage. "Pecuniary loss" includes the following, except that for secondary victims, "pecuniary loss" means what is in paragraphs (10)d. and (10)o. of this section, and for claimants in homicide cases, "pecuniary loss" means what is in paragraphs (10)b., (10)c., (10)d., (10) f., (10)h., (10)o., (10)s., (10)t., and (10)u. of this section: a. Crime scene cleanup not to exceed $1,000.b. Temporary housing not to exceed $1,500.c. Moving expenses not to exceed $1,000.d. Essential personal safety property not to exceed $1,500.e. Lost wages of parents or others charged with the care, custody, or guardianship of a victim while providing care to the victim.f. Reasonable expenses, other than counseling of secondary victims where the victim has been killed by the act of a person during the commission of a crime, not to exceed $1,000.g. The deductible under a policy of automobile insurance where a motor vehicle is stolen in connection with a crime, not to exceed the amount of the deductible.h. Housing-related expenses, including mortgage, rent, security deposit, or other housing costs and furniture not to exceed 3 times the claimant's monthly prospective housing cost.i. Loss of support for victims of violence, not to exceed $3,000, when all of the following are established: 1. The offender was gainfully employed or had other legal income at the time the crime was committed against the victim.2. The victim is fully or partially dependent on the income of the offender.3. The victim no longer has that income from the offender.j. Compensation for towing and impoundment expenses incurred as a direct result of a crime.k. The cost to change locks and replace items seized as evidence.l. Child care not to exceed the deposit plus 2 months of care by a state-approved or licensed day care provider.m. Reimbursement for reasonable expenses incurred due to attendance at criminal proceedings as a witness for the prosecution.o. Psychiatric care and mental health counseling.p. Nonmedical remedial care and treatment rendered in accordance with a religious method of healing.r. Loss of past or future earnings, including reimbursement for vacation, sick, and compensatory time, because of a disability resulting from personal injury.s. Funeral expenses not to exceed $5,000.t. Burial expenses not to exceed $2,500.u. Loss of support to the dependents of a victim of homicide.(11) "Person who is incapacitated" means a person who is incapable of managing the person's own affairs, as determined by the Agency or by a court of competent jurisdiction.(12) "Personal injury" means bodily harm, mental, emotional or psychological harm, or includes pregnancy resulting from the crime.(13) "Secondary victim" means any parent, stepparent, grandparent, son, daughter, spouse, sibling, half-sibling, fiance, 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 person who resided in the victim's household at the time of the crime or at the time of the discovery of the crime. For purposes of receiving mental health counseling only, this definition includes any person who discovers and reports a homicide.(14) "Victim" means a person who sustains a personal injury or is killed by the act of any other person during the commission of a crime.Amended by Laws 2021, ch. 247,s 1, eff. 10/20/2021.Amended by Laws 2013, ch. 276,s 2, eff. 6/30/2014.59 Del. Laws, c. 519, § 1; 60 Del. Laws, c. 436, § 2; 66 Del. Laws, c. 262, §1; 66 Del. Laws, c. 269, §11; 67 Del. Laws, c. 71, §1; 69 Del. Laws, c. 156, §§1, 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 71 Del. Laws, c. 11, §§ 1, 2; 71 Del. Laws, c. 424, §§ 4, 6; 72 Del. Laws, c. 460, §§ 1 - 5, 19; 73 Del. Laws, c. 250, §§ 2, 3; 74 Del. Laws, c. 296, §§ 1 - 6; 76 Del. Laws, c. 360, § 1; 77 Del. Laws, c. 193, § 1; 78 Del. Laws, c. 103, §§ 6, 7.;