Marsy’s Law for Florida today launched its final series of videos featuring crime victims, survivors and advocates who have shared their personal reasons for supporting Amendment 6/Marsy’s Law for Florida, a measure that would place a new set of specific crime victims’ rights in the state constitution. The videos are part of an ongoing social media campaign in support of Amendment 6/Marsy’s Law for Florida. Voters will make the final decision on Amendment 6/Marsy’s Law for Florida next week.
The crime victims and survivors appearing in these video series not only share their poignant stories of how crime has forever altered their lives, but also describe ways in which they feel the criminal justice system has ignored them, left them without a voice and revictimized them. State Attorney Rundle shares her perspective on how we can strengthen victims’ rights and protections in our state constitution without weakening or removing any of the rights currently afforded to those accused or convicted of a crime.
Featured in this final set of videos are:
- Aleta Jarrett of Tallahassee, whose father and her brother were murdered
- State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, Florida’s 11th Judicial Circuit, Miami-Dade County
- Jo-Lee Manning of St. Augustine, whose daughter was murdered
- Laura DeHarde of Coral Springs, an abuse victim
Florida is one of only 15 states that does not have clear, enforceable rights for victims in its state constitution. Some of the constitutional-level rights and protections Amendment 6/Marsy’s Law for Florida would provide include:
- The right to have standing in court
- The right to be present at all proceedings involving the case
- The right to reasonable and timely notice of proceedings
- The right to be heard in any proceeding during which a right of the victim is implicated including release, plea, sentencing, disposition, parole, revocation, expungement or pardon
- The right to timely notice of any release, escape or death of the accused, if the accused is in custody or on supervision at the time of death
- The right to proceedings free from unreasonable delay
- The right to timely information about the outcome of the case
For more information on Amendment 6/Marsy’s Law for Florida, visit marsyslawforfl.com.
