California Law and Victims’ Rights

California Law provides crime victims with important rights. If you are the victim of crime, you may be entitled to the assistance of a victim advocate who can answer many of the questions you might have about the criminal justice system.

Victim Advocates can assist you with:

• Explaining what information you are entitled to receive while proceedings are pending

• Assisting in applying for restitution to compensate you for crime-related losses

• Communicating with the prosecution

• Receiving victim support services

• Helping you prepare a victim impact statement before an offender is sentenced

Dealing with the Media - Your Rights

You have the right to say “No” to an interview.

Never feel that because you have unwillingly been involved in an incident of public interest that you must personally share the details and/or your feelings with the general public. If you decide that you want the public to be aware of how traumatic and unfair your victimization was, you do not automatically have to give up your right to privacy. By knowing and requesting respect for your rights, you can be heard and yet not violated.

You have the right to select the spokesperson or advocate of your choice. 

Selecting one spokesperson – especially in multiple-victim cases – eliminates confusion and contradictory statements. You also have the right to expect the media to respect your selection of a spokesperson or advocate

You have the right to select the time and location for media interviews.

Remember, the media is governed by deadlines. However, nobody should be subjected to a reporter arriving unannounced at the home of a victim. When you are traumatized, your home becomes your refuge. If you wish to protect the privacy of your home, select another location such as a church, meeting hall, office setting, etc. It helps if you are familiar and comfortable with the surroundings.

You have the right to request a specific reporter. 

As a consumer of daily news, each of us identifies with or respects a reporter whom we may never have met. We often form personal opinions about reporters whom we feel are thorough, sensitive, compassionate, and objective. If a newspaper, radio station, or television station contacts you for an interview, don’t hesitate to request the reporter you feel will provide accurate and fair coverage of your story.

You have the right to refuse an interview with a specific reporter even though you have granted interviews to other reporters. 

You may feel that certain reporters are callous, insensitive, uncaring, or judgmental. It is your right to avoid these journalists at all costs. By refusing to speak to such reporters, you may help them recognize their shortcomings in reporting victim-related stories. However, recognize that the reporter may write the story regardless of your participation.

You have the right to say “No” to an interview even though you have previously granted interviews. 

It’s important to recognize that victims often ride an “emotional roller coaster.” You may be able one day to talk with a reporter, and be physically or emotionally unable to do so the next. Victims should never feel “obliged” to grant interviews under any circumstances.

You have the right to release a written statement through a spokesperson in lieu of an interview. 

There may be times when you are emotionally incapable of speaking with the media, but you still wish to express your point of view. Writing and distributing your statement through a spokesperson allows you to express your views without personally granting interviews.

You have the right to exclude children from interviews. 

Children already suffering from the trauma of crime are often retraumatized by exposure to the media. Children often lack the means to verbalize their emotions and may be misinterpreted by both the media and the public. You have a responsibility to protect the interest of children at all cost!

You have the right to refrain from answering any questions with which you are uncomfortable or that you feel are inappropriate. 

You should never feel you have to answer a question just because it’s being asked.

You have the right to know in advance what direction the story about your victimization is going to take. 

You have the right to know what questions reporters will ask you, along with the right to veto any questions. This places you in a partnership with the reporter who is covering the story.

You have the right to ask for review of your quotations in a storyline prior to publication. 

Articles are reviewed and revised by editors who have neither seen nor spoken to you. All too often, victims’ statements and the intended impact of their remarks are misinterpreted or inaccurate. To protect your interests and the message you wish to convey, you have the right to request for a review of direct quotations attributed to you in the storyline.

You have the right to avoid a press conference atmosphere and speak to only one reporter at time. 

At a time when you are in a state of shock, a press conference atmosphere with numerous reporters can be confusing and emotionally draining. If a press conference is absolutely unavoidable, you have the right to select one reporter to ask questions for the majority present.

You have the right to demand a retraction when inaccurate information is reported. 

All news mediums have methods of correcting inaccurate reporting or errors in stories. Use these means to correct any aspect of media coverage which you feel is inaccurate.

You have the right to ask that offensive photographs or visuals be omitted from airing or publication. 

If you feel that graphic photographs or visuals are not the best representation of you or your loved ones, you have the right to ask that they not be used.

You have the right to conduct a television interview using a silhouette or a newspaper interview without having your photograph taken. 

There are many ways for reporters to project your physical image without using your photograph or film footage of you, therefore protecting your identity.

You have the right to completely give your side of the story related to your victimization. 

If you feel that a reporter is not asking questions which need to be addressed, you have the right to give a personal statement. And if the alleged or convicted offender grants interviews, which are inaccurate, you have the right to publicly express your point of view.

You have the right to refrain from answering reporters’ questions during trial. 

If there is any chance of jeopardizing your case by interacting with the media during judicial proceedings, you have the right to remain silent.

You have the right to file a formal complaint against a reporter. 

A reporter’s superior would appreciate knowing when his or her employee’s behavior is unethical, inappropriate or abusive. By reporting such behavior, you will also protect the next unsuspecting victim who might fall prey to such offensive reporters or tactics.

You have the right to grieve in privacy. 

Grief is a highly personal experience. If you do not wish to share it publicly, you have the right to ask reporters to remove themselves during times of grief.

You have the right to suggest training about media and victims for print and electronic media in your community. 

Resources are available to educate media professionals about victims, how to deal with victims, and how to refrain from traumatizing victims. You will be suggesting a greatly needed public service to benefit not only victims and survivors, but all members of the community who interact with the media.

You have the right at all times to be treated with dignity and respect by the media.

Marsy's Law

Constitutional Amendment 2008 California Victim’s Bill of Rights

On November 4, 2008, the People of the State of California approved Proposition 9, the Victims’ Bill of Rights Act of 2008: Marsy’s Law. This measure amended the California Constitution to provide additional rights to victims. Victims can also request a Marsy’s Law card, which contains specific sections of the Victims’ Bill of Rights and resources. Crime victims may obtain additional information regarding Marsy’s Law and local Victim Witness Assistance Center information by contacting the Attorney General’s Victim Services Unit at 1-877-433-9069. A ‘victim’ is defined under the California Constitution as “a person who suffers direct or threatened physical, psychological, or financial harm as a result of the commission or attempted commission of a crime or delinquent act. The term ‘victim’ also includes the person’s spouse, parents, children, siblings, or guardian, and includes a lawful representative of a crime victim who is deceased, a minor, or physically or psychologically incapacitated. The term ‘victim’ does not include a person in custody for an offense, the accused, or a person whom the court finds would not act in the best interests of a minor victim.” An overview of the rights is listed, along with helpful resources, on a card that can be printed out from their website at http://ag.ca.gov/victims.php.

As a victim in a criminal case, you are entitled to the following rights under Article 1, §28(b) of the California Constitution.

(b) In order to preserve and protect a victim’s rights to justice and due process, a victim shall be entitled to the following rights:

1. To be treated with fairness and respect for his or her privacy and dignity, and to be free from intimidation, harassment, and abuse, throughout the criminal or juvenile justice process.

2. To be reasonably protected from the defendant and persons acting on behalf of the defendant.

3. To have the safety of the victim and the victim’s family considered in fixing the amount of bail and release conditions for the defendant.

4. To prevent the disclosure of confidential information or records to the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person acting on behalf of the defendant, which could be used to locate or harass the victim or the victim’s family or which disclose confidential communications made in the course of medical or counseling treatment, or which are otherwise privileged or confidential by law.

5. To refuse an interview, deposition, or discovery request by the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person acting on behalf of the defendant, and to set reasonable conditions on the conduct of any such interview to which the victim consents.

6. To reasonable notice of and to reasonably confer with the prosecuting agency, upon request, regarding, the arrest of the defendant if known by the prosecutor, the charges filed, the determination whether to extradite the defendant, and, upon request, to be notified of and informed before any pretrial disposition of the case.

7. To reasonable notice of all public proceedings, including delinquency proceedings, upon request, at which the defendant and the prosecutor are entitled to be present and of all parole or other post‐conviction release proceedings, and to be present at all such proceedings.

8. To be heard, upon request, at any proceeding, including any delinquency proceeding, involving a post‐arrest release decision, plea, sentencing, post‐conviction release decision, or any proceeding in which a right of the victim is at issue.

9. To a speedy trial and a prompt and final conclusion of the case and any related post‐judgment proceedings.

10. To provide information to a probation department official conducting a pre‐ sentence investigation concerning the impact of the offense on the victim and the victim’s family and any sentencing recommendations before the sentencing of the defendant.

11. To receive, upon request, the pre‐sentence report when available to the defendant, except for those portions made confidential by law.

12. To be informed, upon request, of the conviction, sentence, place and time of incarceration, or other disposition of the defendant, the scheduled release date of the defendant, and the release of or the escape by the defendant from custody.

13. To restitution.

14. To the prompt return of property when no longer needed as evidence.

15. To be informed of all parole procedures, to participate in the parole process, to provide information to the parole authority to be considered before the parole of the offender, and to be notified, upon request, of the parole or other release of the offender.

16. To have the safety of the victim, the victim’s family, and the general public considered before any parole or other post‐judgment release decision is made.

17. To be informed of the rights enumerated in paragraphs (1) through (16).

For purposes of this law, a “victim” is a person who suffers direct or threatened physical, psychological, or financial harm as a result of the commission or attempted commission of a crime or delinquent act. The term “victim” also includes the person’s spouse, parents, children, siblings, or guardian, and includes a lawful representative of a crime victim who is deceased, a minor, or physically or psychologically incapacitated. The term “victim” does not include a person in custody for a offense, the accused, or a person whom the court finds who would not act in the best interests of a minor victim. Note: Please be advised that criminal cases may be resolved as early as the first court appearance.

For Information Contact:

Office of Victims Services / California Attorney General’s Office

P.O. Box 944255 Sacramento, CA 94244-2550 Phone Toll-free: (877) 433-9069

Marsy’s Law Card Information:

http://ag.ca.gov/victims.php http://ag.ca.gov/victimservices/marsy.php

You Have Rights

Most states have amended their constitutions to guarantee certain fundamental rights for crime victims. Typically, these include:

• The right to be notified of all court proceedings related to the offense

• The right to be reasonably protected from the accused offender

• The right to have input at sentencing (e.g., a victim impact statement)

• The right to information about the conviction, sentencing, imprisonment, and release of the offender

• The right to restitution from the convicted offender

• The right to be notified of these rights