BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



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          Date of Hearing: April 16, 2015 


                             ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON RULES


                                Richard Gordon, Chair


          ACR 55  
          (Irwin) - As Introduced April 9, 2015


          SUBJECT:  Crime Victims' Rights Week.


          SUMMARY:  Recognizes the week of April 19 to April 25, 2015,  
          inclusive, as Crime Victims' Rights Week in California.   
          Specifically, this resolution makes the following legislative  
          findings:


          1)Since 1981, National Crime Victims' Rights Week has raised  
            awareness of the special needs of crime victims and the  
            services available to support these victims; and this year,  
            the theme is "Engaging Communities. Empowering Victims."

          2)California has been an innovator in the victims' rights  
            movement, establishing the first crime victim compensation  
            program in the nation in 1965; Women's Advocates and Haven  
            House in Pasadena established the first shelters for battered  
            women in the nation in 1976; and Mothers Against Drunk Driving  
            was founded in 1980 with the establishment of a chapter in  
            Sacramento.

          3)California citizens protected victims' rights in 1982 through  
            the passage of Proposition 8, the Crime Victims' Bill of  
            Rights; and California citizens reaffirmed and afforded  
            additional rights to victims in 2008 through the passage of  








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            Proposition 9, the Victims' Bill of Rights Act of 2008:  
            Marsy's Law.

          4)The respect and protection of victims' rights within the legal  
            process is one of the most critical components of an effective  
            criminal justice system; and the criminal justice system in  
            this state must persist in its effort to better coordinate and  
            improve the quality of services provided to victims and  
            witnesses.

          5)To the maximum extent allowed by law, victims of violent crime  
            should receive compensation for their losses; and each day  
            thousands of victims and witnesses receive assistance from  
            victim support organizations, victim-witness assistance  
            centers, private service providers, and state and local  
            governments.
          


          FISCAL EFFECT:  None


          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          None on file




          Opposition


          None on file








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          Analysis Prepared by:Nicole Willis / RLS. / (916) 319-2800