Much has been done to ensure victims' rights in the past two decades, but today's crime victims still face a federal system that denies them the same Constitutional rights that are ensured to any criminal defendant. That is why I am co-sponsoring a Crime Victims' Rights Amendment to be added to the United States Constitution.
Someone is stalking you. They are showing up at your front door and outside your office, leaving threatening messages on your phone, and waiting by your car when you exit your local grocery store. You go to the police but are told that until you are physically attacked, there's nothing they can do. If you were a victim of stalking before 1990, not just here California but across the nation, there was no law to protect you, and nothing that guaranteed you any basic rights against your assailant.
Much has been done to ensure victims' rights in the past two decades, but today's crime victims still face a federal system that denies them the same Constitutional rights that are ensured to any criminal defendant. That is why I am co-sponsoring a Crime Victims' Rights Amendment to be added to the United States Constitution.
As a state senator in California, I spoke with countless victims who felt abandoned by our legal system. They inspired me to write the nation's first anti-stalking law, ensuring a basic set of rights for stalking victims in our state. The California Legislature passed the bill after four women were killed in the space of six weeks in Orange County. Each of the women, fearing for her life, had sought police protection only to be told there was nothing law enforcement could do until they were physically attacked. One police officer told me at the time the hardest thing he ever had to do in his life was tell a victim he couldn't help her and then find out she had been killed by her stalker.
These stories also motivated me to author Proposition 115 in California, known as the Crime Victims Justice Reform Act, which ensures victims the rights to a speedy trial, reduces the number of times crime victims must testify, and increases sentences and punishment. Today, all 50 states have put stalking laws on their books. When I came to Congress, I also worked to change the federal law, as victims were losing protection when they crossed state lines as many states didn't recognize restraining orders issued elsewhere. This bill was passed by Congress and signed into law in 1996.
Amending our Constitution is not something I take lightly but I believe constitutionally protecting victims' rights is absolutely necessary and appropriate. Our founding document is directly concerned with protecting the rights of individuals to participate in those governmental processes that directly impact their lives, especially the criminal justice system. Specifically, this amendment guarantees the victim the right to be notified of court hearings, to attend those hearings, and to be heard at critical stages of the proceedings.
It will, of course, always be necessary to preserve the rights of the defendant; our belief in "innocent until proven guilty" is a critical part of what makes America unique. However, we also need to recognize the rights of those to whom violent atrocities have been committed. In fact, the crime victims' rights we are proposing in the Crime Victims' Rights Amendment simply parallel the rights for criminal defendants already found in the Constitution. While every state and the federal government have passed protections, they have proven ineffective at removing all the obstacles victims encounter.
Collene Campbell, a former Orange County resident, knows all too well the inadequacies of our judicial system in prioritizing victims' rights. Collene lost her son to a violent murder in 1982. She and her husband, Gary, were denied answers to some of their most basic questions, including how her son died. When the defendants, who had been found guilty, were set free on appeal, Collene and Gary were never even notified.
Over two decades ago, the Campbells joined me in advocating for the first law in California to protect the rights of parents, loved ones and crime victims like themselves who felt stymied and frustrated with the legal system at every turn. Colleen is sharing her story this week as I speak in favor of passing a Crime Victims' Rights Amendment to the Constitution. It's time our Constitution guarantees the same rights already afforded to defendants to those who have suffered as victims of violent crimes.
Rep. Ed Royce represents the 39th Congressional District, made up of parts of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Orange counties. He was the author of the nation's first anti-stalking law and is a co-sponsor of the Crime Victims' Rights Amendment.
