NCJ Number
127150
Journal
Pepperdine Law Review Volume: 17 Issue: 1 Dated: (1989) Pages: 35-58
Date Published
1989
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This article reviews current law governing victims' rights, primarily State law, and summarizes major achievements of the victims' movement in a variety of areas.
Abstract
Although there is not yet an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would guarantee the rights of victims in judicial proceedings, a number of State constitutions guarantee such rights, including those of California, Washington State, Rhode Island, and Michigan. State legislative and judicial actions that have impacted crime victims pertain to victims' right to participate in the criminal justice process, restitution and compensation to the victim for losses suffered due to the crime, victim notification of progress and important events in case processing, and victim impact statements. The latter are reports by crime victims regarding the physical, psychological, and financial harm caused by the crime. Statutes dealing with victim participation in case processing tend to focus on plea bargaining, victim attendance at the trial, and parole proceedings. Other victim-oriented statutes that have become popular aim at countering victim/witness intimidation by the defendant and preventing offenders from gaining financially from notoriety due to the crime. 130 footnotes