Liaisons are advocates who work with victims of crime. Our team can answer questions about the prison system, parole supervision, and assist with your needs.

Public Comment Sessions offer victims and survivors an opportunity to speak with the paroling authority prior to an inmate’s parole suitability hearing. The Office of Victim Services has an advocate at each public comment session to assist individuals through this process. The dates, times and locations of the public comment sessions will be provided to victims by the Kansas Department of Corrections. If you prefer to submit a written statement, you may do so using this form or online. The Prisoner Review Board can also be contacted via telephone for verbal comment submission at (785)746-7516. Our staff can assist during the process with:

Victims or survivors of violence have the opportunity to tour the Kansas correctional facility of their choice. Facility tours are offered at various times throughout the state for victims or survivors of violent crime. During a tour, you may bring others who can support you and you will also be accompanied by an advocate from the Office of Victim Services and the warden of the prison facility being toured. The tour will include, but is not limited to the following:

The Office of Victim Services recognizes that victims are safer when those who have caused them harm receive intervention. Our Batterer Intervention Program facilitates group offerings in facilities and parole offices across the state.

The Office of Victim Services’ Batterer Intervention Program is a program for residents and offenders who have used violence in their intimate partner relationships and have a history of domestic violence related charges or convictions. The program is a minimum of 6 months long and meets twice a week. The curriculum is trauma informed, affective based curriculum that focuses on accountability for inflicting violence in relationships and healing from trauma experienced in childhood. Some topics discussed during the group process and applied through personal introspection are cruelty, integrity, values, accountability, negotiation and conflict resolution, trust, sexual respect, motivations for using cruelty, parenting and shame.

Batterer Intervention Program participants are eligible to receive program credit while incarcerated. Completion of facility-based BIP will reduce the amount of parole-based BIP a resident has to complete as part of their parole special conditions.

The Office of Victim Services offers a voluntary class, called Victim Impact Class, for residents in some of the Kansas prisons. The purpose of the class is for resident to understand the impact of crime on victims and to learn what it means to be accountable for their actions. If you are interested in speaking with a class, please let us know.

If you are interested in speaking with a Victim Impact Class or have questions about Victim Centered Resident and Offender Programming, please call 1-866-404-6732 or email KDOC_Victim_Notification@ks.gov.

Restorative Justice is an alternative way to address the harm caused by crime. Restorative justice programs can sometimes meet needs of victims that the court process did not. Our office has two restorative justice programs:

Some victims want to know if the offender is sorry for what they did. The Apology Letter Bank is a way for victims to receive apology letters from the offender who caused them harm. Per policy, offenders cannot send letters directly to victims. If you would like to know if a letter is available for you, please reach out to our office. Letters are kept in the Apology Letter Bank until you request them.

To request restorative justice services, please call 1-866-404-6732 or email KDOC_Victim_Notification@ks.gov

Many victims are still seeking closure, healing, answers, and/or a chance to use their voice. For some people, having a conversation with the offender helps meet those needs. The Office of Victim Services offers a program called a Victim Offender Dialogue (VOD) which gives you a chance to have a one-time facilitated conversation with the offender of the crime. It isn’t the right choice for everyone, but if you would like to know more, please reach out to our office.

The Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence

KCSDV is a statewide nonprofit organization- and coalition- with the mission of preventing and eliminating sexual and domestic violence.
The Kansas Attorney General’s Crime Victims’ Rights Office

Helps to ensure efficient and effective statewide coordination of local crime victim and witness assistance programs and direct assistance to crime victims and their families. Information is also available about Crime Victim’s Compensation, Sexually Violent Predator Law, and other resources for Kansas crime victims
Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA)

The primary goal of CASA programs is to assist in securing permanent placement for children who are in the child welfare system because of alleged or confirmed abuse and/or neglect.
Parents of Murdered Children

Provides support and assistance to all survivors of homicide victims while working to create a world free of murder.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)

MADD’s mission is to stop drunk driving, support the victims of this violent crime and prevent underage drinking.
The National Center on Elder Abuse

Dedicated to providing professionals, policymakers, and the public information and resources on elder abuse prevention and response to help ensure that older adults age with dignity and respect, free from maltreatment.
KBI Offender Registry

The Kansas Offender Registration enacted by K.S.A. 22-4901 et seq., contains information only on convicted offenders who committed their offenses on or after April 14, 1994. This site allows you to search for registered offenders.
Kansas Crime Victims Bill of Rights

Know your rights as a crime victim in Kansas as outlined in K.S.A 74-73333

The Kansas Department of Corrections in collaboration with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI), the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police (KACP), the Kansas Sheriff’s Association (KSA), and the Kansas Peace Officers Association (KPOA), developed a deck of playing cards featuring 52 unsolved homicide, missing person, and unidentified remains cases throughout the state of Kansas. The decks have been distributed to residents of state correctional facilities and county jails in hopes that persons familiar with a case will come forward with a beneficial tip or information.

If you have information about a case featured in the deck or any unsolved case, please call 1-800-KS-CRIME (800-572-7463)

The Office of Victim Services is victim-focused and safety-focused. We began with the basic service of victim notification and have expanded to provide a network of services that attempt to lessen the impact on crime victims as much as possible. Crime victims do not have control over the victimization that another person has chosen to perpetrate and victims/survivors deserve to be heard. Giving victims/survivors a voice in the system and increasing their safety is our focus.

As advocates for victims and for the success of offenders, we continue to support the risk-reduction focused system that the Department of Corrections has created. When considering the safety of crime victims and the public in general, simply containing and then releasing offenders without addressing the roots of the criminal behavior is not the safest option. Risk reduction seeks to reduce the likelihood of negative behavior regardless of the environment. Victim safety is a central and primary factor to the work of reducing offender risk and victim’s voices in the process are imperative. We strive to bring balance to the system.

If there is a topic or service that you would like to know more about, please let us know.

Office of Victim Services, KDOC

The Kansas Prisoner Review Board holds a parole hearing with a resident one month prior to the resident’s parole eligibility date. Initial parole eligibility dates are based upon a resident’s sentence length. Subsequent parole eligibility dates are determined by the Board. The Board holds a public comment session one month prior to a resident’s parole hearing. Public comment sessions provide victims and other interested parties with the opportunity to present their views regarding the possibility of a resident’s parole. The dates, times and locations of the public comment sessions will be provided to victims by the Kansas Department of Corrections.

discretionary release of a resident granted by the Kansas Prisoner Review Board after the resident has served at least the minimum sentence required by law. The offender may be returned to incarceration for violating conditions of release.

mandatory supervised release established by law that usually occurs when the resident has served one half of the maximum sentence. The offender can be returned to incarceration for violating conditions of release.

mandatory supervised release of a resident who has served the incarceration portion of the sentence under provisions of the Sentencing Guidelines Act or whose sentence was converted to a guidelines sentence. The offender can be returned to incarceration for violating conditions of release.

release occurring when a resident has served to the maximum sentence date

notification of the death of a resident.

an unauthorized absence by a resident from the correctional facility to which the resident is assigned. Notice of an escape will be provided to victims as soon as possible.

a resident classified as minimum custody may be assigned to a work release program. The resident is employed in the community but must return to the facility during non-working hours.

a resident classified as minimum custody may be assigned to supervised work crews outside the security perimeter of the facility.

request from a resident for sentence modification requiring approval of the Governor.

You will need to provide your name and address to the Kansas Department of Corrections and the District/County Attorney’s Office, and update that information when your name or address changes.

For additional information, you may view our  brochure,also available (En Espanol).

As a victim, you are eligible to apply for mileage reimbursement when you attend a Public Comment Session.  To be eligible, you must be registered with the Office of Victim Services (OVS) and have traveled at least 20 miles round trip to attend the session.  The grant is designed to increase the ability of crime victims to participate in Public Comment Sessions by providing participants a single reimbursement of expenses up to $500 which will cover the least expensive mode of travel – vehicle, air, or rail – and one night lodging in a KDOC direct bill hotel if you have traveled 450 miles or more.  You may apply for reimbursement for any one of the three Public Comment Sessions offered that month.  Only mileage distance traveled within Kansas or a bordering state will be covered at the current Kansas Department of Administration Travel Program rate which is $.535 per mile.  The grant allows for one applicant per carload to apply so if you traveled as a group and you drove, please consider submitting an application.  Airfare or rail travel within the continental US will be covered up to the amount of mileage it is in lieu of.

To apply for funds under this program, please complete the Victim Mileage Reimbursement Request you received in your packet notifying you about the session. You may also request a form at the session and submit the form to the Victim Service liaison present. Reimbursement checks will be mailed approximately one month after the session.

The information on the Reimbursement Request form, as with all victim information, is confidential. 

If you have other questions about this program, please call Victim Notification Coordinator Kristin Finlay at (785) 296-3333 or our toll-free number (866) 404-6732.

This grant project is funded or partially funded by the Federal Victims of Crime Act, awarded by the federal Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs of the U.S. Department of Justice as administered by Kansas Governor Sam Brownback.  The opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication, program or exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Kansas Governor or the U.S. Department of Justice.

Visitation can be different at every prison facility.  The types of visitation allowed, days and hours of visitation, the level of security offered during visitation and the type of room in which visitation occurs can vary from prison to prison.  If you are a victim who is interested in visitation, please complete the application posted below and contact Victim Services for further assistance on our toll-free line at (866) 404-6732 or e-mail

The Office of Victim Services provides training to inmates, Kansas Department of Corrections employees, other correctional agencies, and community organizations.

Victim Impact: Listen and Learn is a program that provides inmates an opportunity to learn how their behaviors have impacted others. Inmates learn how to define who their victims are, understand the possible impact of nine different crimes and work to comprehend the effects of those crimes on different victims.

Victim Impact: Listen and Learn is a curriculum developed by the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) and it was designed to allow inmates the opportunity to learn how their behaviors impact the lives of others.

Here is a sample of the topics discussed: robbery, assault, domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, DUI and homicide.

Facilitators are required to go through a screening process with the Program Coordinator and then attend a six-hour training session to learn the curriculum.

The facilitator is required to be available for phone conferences with a co-facilitator and Program Coordinator. Facilitating a class requires 2-3 hours each week for preparation and facilitation. The class is two hours in length once a week for 13 weeks.

If you are a victim/survivor and are interested in sharing your story about how crime has impacted your life, you will be asked to go through a screening process with the Program Coordinator. After the screening there will be an overview of the curriculum and your role in the class will be discussed.

The Program Coordinator will also cover the time commitment required and details regarding the prison facility within which you will be speaking.

We are looking for volunteers and speakers at all the KDOC facilities. If you are interested, please contact Holly Chavez at (785) 817-2594.