BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        ACR 55|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                              |
          |(916) 651-1520    Fax: (916)      |                              |
          |327-4478                          |                              |
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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  ACR 55
          Author:   Irwin (D), et al.
          Amended:  4/20/15 in Assembly 
          Vote:     21  

          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  Read and adopted, 4/20/15

           SUBJECT:   Crime Victims' Rights Week


          SOURCE:    Crime Victims Action Alliance


          DIGEST:  This resolution recognizes the week of April 19 to  
          April 25, 2015, inclusive, as Crime Victims' Rights Week in  
          California.  


          ANALYSIS:   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  








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            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  
            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.




          This resolution recognizes the week of April 19 to April 25,  
          2015, inclusive, as Crime Victims' Rights Week in California.  










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          Related/Prior Legislation




          SCR 44 (Nielsen, 2015) declares the week of April 19, 2015, to  
          April 25, 2015, inclusive, as Crime Victims' Rights Week.  This  
          resolution passed the Senate 37-0 on 4/23/15.


          ACR 45 (Perea, Chapter 34, Statutes of 2011) proclaimed the week  
          of April 10, 2011, to April 16, 2011, inclusive, as Crime  
          Victims' Rights Week.


          ACR 153 (Nielsen, 2010) would have recognized the week of April  
          18, 2010, through April 24, 2010, as Crime Victims' Rights Week.


          ACR 59 (Nielsen, Chapter 33, Statutes of 2009) recognized the  
          week of April 26, 2009, through May 2, 2009, as Crime Victims'  
          Rights Week.


          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:NoLocal:    No


          SUPPORT:   (Verified4/27/15)


          Crime Victims Action Alliance (source)
          AFSCME Local 685
          Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs
          Association of Deputy District Attorneys
          California Association of Highway Patrolmen
          California College and University Police Chiefs Association
          California Narcotic Officers Association
          California State Lodge, Fraternal Order of Police
          Crime Victims United of California








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                                                                     Page  4



          Long Beach Police Officers Association
          Los Angeles County District Attorney
          Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers Association
          Los Angeles Police Protective League
          Los Angeles Probation Officers Union
          Riverside Sheriffs Association
          Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs' Association
          San Diego County District Attorney
          Santa Ana Police Officers Association


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified4/27/15)


          None received

          Prepared by: Jonas Austin / SFA / (916) 651-1520
          4/28/15 15:31:25
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