(Cal. Const., art. I, § 28)
(7) Fnally, the People find and declare that the rght to publc safety extends to publc and prvate prmary, elementary, junor hgh, and senor hgh school, and communty college, Calforna State
Unversty, Unversty of Calforna, and prvate college and unversty campuses, where students and staff have the rght to be safe and secure n ther persons.
(8) To accomplsh the goals t s necessary that the laws of Calforna relatng to the crmnal justce process be amended n order to protect the legtmate rghts of vctms of crme.
(b) In order to preserve and protect a vctm’s rghts to justce and due process, a vctm shall be enttled to the followng rghts:
(1) To be treated wth farness and respect for hs or her prvacy and dgnty, and to be free from
ntmdaton, harassment, and abuse, throughout the crmnal or juvenle justce process.
(2) To be reasonably protected from the defendant and persons actng on behalf of the defendant.
(3) To have the safety of the vctm and the vctm’s famly consdered n fixng the amount of bal and release condtons for the defendant.
(4) To prevent the dsclosure of confidental nformaton or records to the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person actng on behalf of the defendant, whch could be used to locate or harass the vctm or the vctm’s famly or whch dsclose confidental communcatons made n the course of medcal or counselng treatment, or whch are otherwse prvleged or confidental by law.
(5) To refuse an ntervew, deposton, or dscovery request by the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person actng on behalf of the defendant, and to set reasonable condtons on the conduct of any such ntervew to whch the vctm consents.
(6) To reasonable notce of and to reasonably confer wth the prosecutng agency, upon request, regardng, the arrest of the defendant f known by the prosecutor, the charges filed, the determnaton whether to extradte the defendant, and, upon request, to be notfied of and nformed before any pretral dsposton of the case.
(7) To reasonable notce of all publc proceedngs, ncludng delnquency proceedngs, upon request, at whch the defendant and the prosecutor are enttled to be present and of all parole or other post-convcton release proceedngs, and to be present at all such proceedngs.
(8) To be heard, upon request, at any proceedng, ncludng any delnquency proceedng, nvolvng a post-arrest release decson, plea, sentencng, postconvcton release decson, or any proceedng n whch a rght of the vctm s at ssue.
(9) To a speedy tral and a prompt and final concluson of the case and any related post-judgment proceedngs.
(10) To provde nformaton to a probaton department offical conductng a pre-sentence nvestgaton concernng the mpact of the offense on the vctm and the vctm’s famly and any sentencng
recommendatons before the sentencng of the defendant.
(11) To receve, upon request, the pre-sentence report when avalable to the defendant, except for those portons made confidental by law.
(12) To be nformed, upon request, of the convcton, sentence, place and tme of ncarceraton, or other dsposton of the defendant, the scheduled release date of the defendant, and the release of or the escape by the defendant from custody.
(13) To resttuton.
(A) It s the unequvocal ntenton of the People of the State of Calforna that all persons who suffer losses as a result of crmnal actvty shall have the rght to seek and secure resttuton from the persons convcted of the crmes causng the losses they suffer.
(B) Resttuton shall be ordered from the convcted wrongdoer n every case, regardless of the sentence or dsposton mposed, n whch a crme vctm suffers a loss.
(C) All monetary payments, mones, and property collected from any person who has been ordered to make resttuton shall be first appled to pay the amounts ordered as resttuton to the vctm.
(14) To the prompt return of property when no longer needed as evdence.
(15) To be nformed of all parole procedures, to partcpate n the parole process, to provde nformaton to the parole authorty to be consdered before the parole of the offender, and to be notfied, upon request, of the parole or other release of the offender.
(16) To have the safety of the vctm, the vctm’s famly, and the general publc consdered before any parole or other post-judgment release decson s made.
(17) To be nformed of the rghts enumerated n paragraphs (1) through (16).
(c)
(1) A vctm, the retaned attorney of a vctm, a lawful representatve of the vctm, or the prosecutng attorney upon request of the vctm, may enforce the rghts enumerated n subdvson (b) n any tral or appellate court wth jursdcton over the case as a matter of rght. The court shall act promptly on such a request.
(2) Ths secton does not create any cause of acton for compensaton or damages aganst the State, any poltcal subdvson of the State, any officer, employee, or agent of the State or of any of ts poltcal subdvsons, or any officer or employee of the court.
(d) The grantng of these rghts to vctms shall not be construed to deny or dsparage other rghts possessed by vctms. The court n ts dscreton may extend the rght to be heard at sentencng to any person harmed by the defendant. The parole authorty shall extend the rght to be heard at a parole hearng to any person harmed by the offender.
(e) As used n ths secton, a “vctm” s a person who suffers drect or threatened physcal, psychologcal, or financal harm as a result of the commsson or attempted commsson of a crme or delnquent act.
The term “vctm” also ncludes the person’s spouse, parents, chldren, sblngs, or guardan, and ncludes a lawful representatve of a crme vctm who s deceased, a mnor, or physcally or psychologcally
ncapactated. The term “vctm” does not nclude a person n custody for an offense, the accused, or a person whom the court finds would not act n the best nterests of a mnor vctm.
(f) In addton to the enumerated rghts provded n subdvson (b) that are personally enforceable by vctms as provded n subdvson (c), vctms of crme have addtonal rghts that are shared wth all of the People of the State of Calforna. These collectvely held rghts nclude, but are not lmted to, the followng:
(1) Rght to Safe Schools. All students and staff of publc prmary, elementary, junor hgh, and senor hgh schools, and communty colleges, colleges, and unverstes have the nalenable rght to attend campuses whch are safe, secure and peaceful.
(2) Rght to Truth-n-Evdence. Except as provded by statute hereafter enacted by a two-thrds vote of the membershp n each house of the Legslature, relevant evdence shall not be excluded n any crmnal proceedng, ncludng pretral and post convcton motons and hearngs, or n any tral or hearng of a juvenle for a crmnal offense, whether heard n juvenle or adult court. Nothng n ths secton shall affect any exstng statutory rule of evdence relatng to prvlege or hearsay, or Evdence Code Sectons 352, 782 or 1103. Nothng n ths secton shall affect any exstng statutory or consttutonal rght of the press.
(3) Publc Safety Bal. A person may be released on bal by sufficent suretes, except for captal crmes when the facts are evdent or the presumpton great. Excessve bal may not be requred. In settng, reducng or denyng bal, the judge or magstrate shall take nto consderaton the protecton of the publc, the safety of the vctm, the serousness of the offense charged, the prevous crmnal record of the defendant, and the probablty of hs or her appearng at the tral or hearng of the case. Publc safety and the safety of the vctm shall be the prmary consderatons.
A person may be released on hs or her own recognzance n the court’s dscreton, subject to the same factors consdered n settng bal.
Before any person arrested for a serous felony may be released on bal, a hearng may be held before the magstrate or judge, and the prosecutng attorney and the vctm shall be gven notce and reasonable opportunty to be heard on the matter.
When a judge or magstrate grants or denes bal or release on a person’s own recognzance, the reasons for that decson shall be stated n the record and ncluded n the court’s mnutes.
(4) Use of Pror Convctons. Any pror felony convcton of any person n any crmnal proceedng, whether adult or juvenle, shall subsequently be used wthout lmtaton for purposes of mpeachment or enhancement of sentence n any crmnal proceedng. When a pror felony convcton s an element of any felony offense, t shall be proven to the trer of fact n open court.
(5) Truth n Sentencng. Sentences that are ndvdually mposed upon convcted crmnal wrongdoers based upon the facts and crcumstances surroundng ther cases shall be carred out n complance wth the courts’ sentencng orders, and shall not be substantally dmnshed by early release polces ntended to allevate overcrowdng n custodal facltes. The legslatve branch shall ensure sufficent fundng to adequately house nmates for the full terms of ther sentences, except for statutorly authorzed credts whch reduce those sentences.
(6) Reform of the parole process. The current process for parole hearngs s excessve, especally n cases
n whch the defendant has been convcted of murder. The parole hearng process must be reformed for the benefit of crme vctms.
(g) As used n ths artcle, the term “serous felony” s any crme defined n subdvson (c) of Secton 1192.7 of the Penal Code, or any successor statute.
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