Requires that following the acquittal after trial or the sentencing of any defendant for a felony, the district attorney, or their designee, shall mail a written summary of the disposition of such felony to any victim who was not present at the time that the defendant was sentenced or acquitted after trial.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6332A
SPONSOR: Romero TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to notifying
certain crime victims of the disposition of criminal trial
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this legislation is to recognize the legitimate rights
and interests of crime victims to be notified and kept informed of court
proceedings and certain other criminal justice agency actions which
follow victimization.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends subdivision 2 of section 380.50 of the criminal proce-
dure law by adding a new paragraph (g).
Section 2: Sets forth the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
There is a fundamental need for crime victims to be kept informed
concerning the criminal justice process in which they have become
involved. In some cases, crime victims can lose track of the state of
their case, miss court dates, and not be informed on outcomes. At the
closure of a criminal case acquittal at trial or sentencing for a felony
- this bill would require the district attorney or their designee to
mail the named crime victim a copy of the final disposition.
For example: notifying the crime victim that the criminal defendant that
has pled guilty has then been sentenced to a certain number of years or
was given a fine of a certain number of dollars, or was sentenced to a
certain number of years of probation, or was acquitted after trial. This
legislation would provide restorative justice, closure, and finality to
a criminal case that crime victims may not have otherwise because they
were not present in court to witness and absorb this information them-
selves.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-2024: A1332
2021-2022: A2524
2019-2020: A4587
2017-2018: A3779
2015-2016: A3765
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take place on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.
