Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yes | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Positive |
Summary: Current law entitles a victim, guardian of a victim, or a relative of a deceased victim rights regarding prosecution proceedings. HB 899 would grant the aforementioned persons the right to not be contacted by victim outreach specialist retained by the defendant's attorney, designate a victims service provider to receive communication from victim outreach specialists, and use the state attorney to notify the defendant's attorney of a decision based on the two previously mentioned rights.
Analysis: Most of the cases in which the defense hires a victim outreach coordinator occurs in the death penalty cases. HB 899 requires the victim outreach coordinator to go through the prosecutor. This legislation may help prevent victims from unwanted outreach by representatives of the defendant's attorney. We support HB 899.