PENNSYLVANIA BECOMES 13^th STATE TO PASS MARSY’S LAW

Now 40% of Americans live in states that have equal constitutional rights to the accused and convicted enshrined in their state constitutions

Philadelphia, PA – Voters in Pennsylvania have overwhelmingly voted to amend their state constitution to include Marsy’s Law, a victims’ rights initiative that guarantees crime victims with an equal level of constitutional protections already afforded to the accused and convicted. Pennsylvania now joins Nevada, Oklahoma, Kentucky, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Ohio, California, Illinois, North Dakota, Montana and South Dakota in passing Marsy’s Law, ensuring that 40% of Americans now live in states that have rights they can assert in the criminal justice system should they ever become crime victims.

Measure now qualifies to appear as a referendum on November 2019 ballot

Constitutional amendment, which would provide equal enforceable rights for crime victims, passes in second legislative session during National Crime Victims’ Rights Week

In 1998, the Pennsylvania Crime Victims Act was passed to create statutory rights for victims.

However, over the past two decades, it has become clear that statutory rights are insufficient and illusory because, if the rights are violated, there is no recourse for a victim. Victims deserve to have constitutional protections, just as those who are accused and convicted do.

Measure to provide equal constitutional protections for crime victims, which was approved unanimously in 2018, enters second legislative session

The commonwealth is one of only nine states without victims’ rights embedded in constitution

During the week following the 2018 midterm elections, the Marsy’s Law for Pennsylvania field team descended upon the state Capitol to educate legislators on Marsy’s Law for PA.

According the the U.S. Department of Education, a 2016 survey of more than 6,500 colleges and universities across the country showed that there were 37,389 reported criminal offenses on campuses. Crime is a major problem at our nation’s schools, and that is why in 2008 Congress unanimously approved the creation of National Campus Safety Awareness Month (NCSAM), which is celebrated every September.

Imagine a childhood virus that is known to knock 20 years off of your life expectancy. Everyone from health care experts to legislators and social service agencies would be hard at work looking for preventions and cures for this public health hazard. Why don’t we look at violence and its victims the same way?