Towards a Victim-Centric Approach to Criminal Procedure

Abstract

This article presents a theoretical and jurisprudential analysis of the victim's trajectory in criminal proceedings and proposes the construction of a victim-centered model based on the positive procedural obligations recognized under International Human Rights Law (IHRL), especially through the case law of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR). The study aims to demonstrate that the victim, historically excluded from procedural protagonism, must be acknowledged as a subject of human rights and as a legitimate beneficiary of protection within the global and inter-American systems. The methodology combines a critical literature review with a qualitative analysis of key judgments issued by the IACtHR. The research reveals that the Court’s jurisprudence establishes binding normative parameters for States through the mechanism of conventionality control, requiring diligent investigations, effective victim participation, and reparatory mechanisms, including within criminal justice processes. As a result, the article proposes a redesign of criminal proceedings that balances procedural safeguards and efficiency, in accordance with the principles of proportionality and integral protection. It concludes that placing the victim at the center of the criminal justice system does not represent a regression of guarantees or punitive populism, but rather a normative and institutional evolution necessary for achieving justice guided by human dignity. The victim-centered criminal process is, therefore, consistent with international commitments and essential to ensuring equitable and effective protection of human rights.