Throughout his 13-year career as Cass County prosecutor, Victor Fitz has dedicated himself to ensuring locals impacted by the brutal, destructive effects of crime receive justice.

As the recently appointed head of Michigan’s crime victims rights agency, Fitz will lend a hand to seeing that people across the state receive restitution for the atrocities committed against them.

Gov. Rick Snyder named the local prosecutor as chair of the Michigan Crime Victim Services Commission Tuesday. Fitz, a member of the commission since 2011, replaces Catherine Garcia-Lindstrom, the former public safety director of the Walker Police Department, as head of the five-person board.

“It is a significant honor to be named chair,” Fitz said. “I am very humbled by the governor’s decision.”

Snyder also named Lansing’s Annie Harrison to the commission Tuesday.

“Annie and Victor have extensive knowledge in this field and I am confident they will have a positive impact on this commission and assist numerous crime victims statewide,” Snyder said, in a release about the appointments.

Other commission members include William Fales, of Kalamazoo; Karen Hall, of Roseville; and Brian Mackie, of Ann Arbor.

As chair, Fitz will run all meetings of the commission, who assemble eight to nine times a year, as well as work with staff members of the Crime Victim Compensation Program, an agency that provides reimbursement to victims.

The compensation program was formed in 1989 following the enactment of an amendment to the Michigan Crime Victims Rights Act. The program is funded through an assessment fee on criminals convicted on charges that fall under the victims rights statute, which include robbery, home invasion, domestic violence, criminal sexual conduct and murder, Fitz said.

Although victims of these crimes can receive restitution to help pay for lost property, medical bills or funeral costs from defendants, these damages are often not paid in a timely fashion, especially when perpetrators receive lengthy jail or prison sentences, Fitz said. In those cases, victims can apply to receive money from the Victim Compensation Program.

“It is the responsibility of the commission to make sure the program administration metes out these funds on a timely basis,” Fitz said. “When there are objections, we review the cases and make a final determination on how much should be given out.”

Fitz thanked Gov. Snyder for the appointment, and also complimented his fellow commission members, saying their work over the last several years made the program more efficient and beneficial to state crime victims.

In spite of his increased responsibilities as commission chair, the prosecutor’s duties to residents of Cass County have not diminished, and his work in Lansing will also benefit residents of the place he calls home, Fitz said.“At the end of the day, it is why we do what we do — to protect the public, in particular the victims of crimes, whether they are a store owner who has lost property due to theft, a victim of domestic violence or rape or the mourning family of a murder victim,” he said. “Prosecutors want to do everything they can to help victims, and I see this as a tremendous opportunity to further that objective.”