House Joint Resolution 45
Introduced on April 16, 2015 by Reps. Trent Franks
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to protect the rights of crime victims.
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each House concurring therein), That the following article is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which shall be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the Constitution when ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States:
``Article--
``Section 1. The following rights of a crime victim, being capable
of protection without denying the constitutional rights of the accused,
shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State. The
crime victim shall have the rights to reasonable notice of, and shall
not be excluded from, public proceedings relating to the offense, to be
heard at any release, plea, sentencing, or other proceeding involving
any right established by this article, to proceedings free from
unreasonable delay, to reasonable notice of the release or escape of
the accused, to due consideration of the crime victim's safety,
dignity, and privacy, and to restitution. The crime victim or the crime
victim's lawful representative has standing to assert and enforce these
rights. Nothing in this article provides grounds for a new trial or any
claim for damages. Review of the denial of any right established
herein, which may include interlocutory relief, shall be subject to the
standards of ordinary appellate review.
``Section 2. For purposes of this article, a crime victim includes any person against whom the criminal offense is committed or who is directly and proximately harmed by the commission of an act, which, if committed by a competent adult, would constitute a crime.
‘‘SECTION 3. This article shall be inoperative unless it has been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution
by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within 14 years after the date of its submission to the
States by the Congress. This article shall take effect on the 180th day after the date of its ratification.’’.
