A/RES/65/228 such powers cannot be granted to the police, measures must be taken to ensure timely access to court decisions in order to ensure swift action by the court. Such protective measures should not be dependent on the initiation of a criminal case; (i) Comprehensive services are provided and protection measures are taken when necessary to ensure the safety, privacy and dignity of victims and their families at all stages of the criminal justice process, without prejudice to the victim’s ability or willingness to participate in an investigation or prosecution, and to protect them from intimidation and retaliation, including by establishing comprehensive witness and victim protection programmes; (j) Safety risks, including the vulnerability of victims, are taken into account in decisions concerning non-custodial or quasi-custodial sentences, the granting of bail, conditional release, parole or probation, especially when dealing with repeat and dangerous offenders; (k) Claims of self-defence by women who have been victims of violence, particularly in cases of battered woman syndrome, 23 are taken into account in investigations, prosecutions and sentences against them; (l) All procedures and complaint mechanisms are accessible to women who are victims of violence without fear of reprisal or discrimination. IV. Police, prosecutors and other criminal justice officials 16. Member States are urged, within the framework of their national legal systems, as appropriate and taking into account all relevant international legal instruments: (a) To ensure that the applicable provisions of laws, policies, procedures, programmes and practices related to violence against women are consistently and effectively implemented by the criminal justice system and supported by relevant regulations as appropriate; (b) To develop mechanisms to ensure a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, coordinated, systematic and sustained response to violence against women in order to increase the likelihood of successful apprehension, prosecution and conviction of the offender, contribute to the well-being and safety of the victim and prevent secondary victimization; (c) To promote the use of specialized expertise in the police, among prosecution authorities and in other criminal justice agencies, including through the establishment, where possible, of specialized units or personnel and specialized courts or dedicated court time, and to ensure that all police officers, prosecutors and other criminal justice officials receive regular and institutionalized training to sensitize them to gender and child-related issues and to build their capacity with regard to violence against women; (d) To promote the development and implementation of appropriate policies among different criminal justice agencies to ensure coordinated, consistent and effective responses to violence perpetrated against women by personnel within such agencies and to ensure that attitudes of criminal justice officials that foster, justify or tolerate violence against women are held up to public scrutiny and sanction; _______________ 23 Battered woman syndrome is suffered by women who, because of repeated violent acts by an intimate partner, may suffer depression and are unable to take any independent action that would allow them to escape the abuse, including refusing to press charges or to accept offers of support. 11