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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 873 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1458
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Marjorie C. Decker
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act to enhance the rights of crime victims in the Commonwealth.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Marjorie C. Decker25th Middlesex1/11/2023Vanna Howard17th Middlesex1/31/2023 1 of 6
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 873 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1458
By Representative Decker of Cambridge, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1458) of
Marjorie C. Decker and Vanna Howard relative to the rights of victims of certain crimes. The
Judiciary.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 1530 OF 2021-2022.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
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An Act to enhance the rights of crime victims in the Commonwealth.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Section 1 of chapter 258B, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is
2hereby amended by inserting after the word “stepparent”, in line 16, the following word:-
3grandparent,
4 SECTION 2. Said Section 1 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby further
5amended by inserting after the words “two hundred and fifty-eight C”, in line 17, the following
6words:- person with whom the victim lived and in a relationship similar to marriage,
7 SECTION 3. Said Section 1 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby further
8amended by inserting, after line 18, the following words:- 2 of 6
9 “probation officer”, an associate probation officer, probation officer, assistant chief
10probation officer, chief probation officer, regional probation supervisor, statewide probation
11supervisor, victim service coordinator, the deputy commissioner of field services, and any other
12personnel whom the commissioner of probation shall direct.
13 SECTION 4. Section 2 of said chapter 258b, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
14inserting at the beginning the following:-
15 Services provided in this chapter shall be afforded to victims and family members of
16violent crimes, including homicide and sexual assault, to the fullest extent possible in matters
17that have not resulted in complaints or indictments have not been issued.
18 SECTION 5. Said Section 2 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
19inserting before the word “prosecutors”, in line 1, the following word:-
20 Furthermore,
21 SECTION 6. Subsection (l) of Section 3 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby
22amended by striking out, in line 91, the word “A” and inserting in place thereof the following
23word:- B
24 SECTION 7. Said section 3 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
25striking out subsection (p) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-
26 (p) for victims, to be present and heard at sentencing or the disposition of the case against
27the defendant. If a victim is unavailable or not present at the time the defendant pleads or is
28found guilty, delinquent, or admits to sufficient facts, the court shall delay sentencing by no less
29than one business day to afford victims the opportunity to be present and or heard. The court 3 of 6
30may inquire of the prosecutor, on the record, whether the victim has indicated their desire to not
31be present or heard at sentencing. Victims have the right to be heard through an oral and written
32victim impact statement at sentencing or the disposition of the case against the defendant, even if
33there is admission to sufficient facts, the sentence is mandatory, or there is an agreed upon plea,
34about the effects of the crime on the victim and as to a recommended sentence, pursuant to
35section four B of chapter two hundred and seventy-nine, and to be heard at any other time
36deemed appropriate by the court. The court shall consider said victim impact statement in
37disposition of the case against the defendant. The victim also has a right to submit the victim
38impact statement to the parole board for inclusion in its records regarding the perpetrator of the
39crime;
40 SECTION 8. Subsection (t) of said section 3 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is
41hereby amended by inserting after the word “custody,”, in line 144, the following words:-
42including a release on bail,
43 SECTION 9. Said section 3 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
44inserting the following sections:-
45 (x) for victims, to be notified by the prosecutor that they have the right to provide the sex
46offender registry board with a written impact statement for inclusion in the convicted sex
47offender’s classification determination pursuant to section 178K(1)(k) of chapter 6.
48 (y) for victims, to be notified by the probation officer if an offender has a violation of
49probation hearing, any sentencing after a finding of a violation of probation, and any motion to
50modify the sentence or disposition of probation, including a transfer of supervision or a motion 4 of 6
51to terminate. Victims requesting such notice must provide the probation service with current
52contact information.
53 (z) for victims, to be heard through an oral or written statement after a finding of a
54violation of probation, and any motion to modify the sentence or disposition, including a motion
55to terminate.
56 SECTION 10. Section 7 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
57inserting after the words “district attorney,”, in line 1, the following words:- probation service,
58parole board, sex offender registry board, department of correction, department of youth
59services, sheriffs,
60 SECTION 11. The first sentence of section 4B of chapter 279, as appearing in the 2020
61Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words “against the person or crime where
62physical injury to a person results, excluding any crime for which a sentence of death may be
63imposed, and which involves an identified victim whose whereabouts “ and inserting in place
64thereof the following words:- a victim as defined by chapter 258B.
65 SECTION 12. Said Section 4B of said chapter 279, as so appearing, is hereby further
66amended by inserting after the fourth paragraph the following paragraph:-
67 The court shall consider said victim impact statement in disposition of the case against
68the defendant.
69 SECTION 13. There shall be a bail notification special commission established pursuant
70to section 2A of chapter 4 of the General Laws, referred to in this section as the commission. The
71commission shall evaluate policies and procedures related to the current bail system and 5 of 6
72recommend improvements or changes related to notification services, pursuant to section 3(t) of
73chapter 258B, for victims and family members of crime, as defined by chapter 258B.
74 (a) The commission shall consist of no more than 11 members: 1 of whom shall be the
75executive director of the Massachusetts office for victim assistance or designee, whom shall
76serve as chair; 1 of whom shall be a member of the house of representatives appointed by the
77speaker of the house of representatives; 1 of whom shall be a member of the senate appointed by
78the president of the senate; 1 of whom shall be the chief justice of the trial court or designee; 1 of
79whom shall be the secretary of the executive office of public safety and security or designee; 1 of
80whom shall be the commissioner of probation service or designee; 1 of whom shall be the
81president of the Massachusetts chiefs of police association or designee; 1 of whom shall be the
82president of the Massachusetts sheriffs association or designee; 1 of whom shall be the president
83of the Massachusetts district attorneys association or designee; and no more than 2 of whom
84shall be crime victims appointed by the victim and witness assistance board.
85 (b) The commission shall submit its final report to the governor, the house and senate
86chairs of the joint committee on the judiciary and the house and senate chairs of the joint
87committee on public safety and homeland security not later than December 31, 2024 which shall
88include: (i) an evaluation of the current practices relative to bail notification to victims and
89family members when an offender is released from custody; (ii) an evaluation of what shall
90constitute appropriate notification to victims and family members and the best practice in which
91to provide notification (iii) a policy recommendation to ensure appropriate notification services
92are provided to victims and family members dependent on the custodial authority in which an
93offender is held; (iv) any proposed technology or multi-disciplinary system recommendations to
94provide notification services, including contracting with state or non-state entities to develop 6 of 6
95implementation plans and estimated costs to the commonwealth; and (v) any additional proposed
96policy, regulatory, or statutory changes concerning notification services for victims and family
97members within the pretrial system.