[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4729 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4729
To protect the rights of crime victims, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 17, 2019
Ms. Speier (for herself, Mr. Brooks of Alabama, Ms. Frankel, Mr. Perry,
Mrs. Bustos, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Cisneros, Mr. Cohen, Mrs.
Dingell, Ms. Norton, Mr. Ryan, Mrs. Torres of California, and Mrs.
Wagner) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To protect the rights of crime victims, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Courtney Wild Crime Victims' Rights
Reform Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. CRIME VICTIMS' RIGHTS.
Section 3771 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``Government in
the case'' and inserting ``the Government, including
the right to confer about any plea bargain or other
resolution of the case before such plea bargain or
resolution is presented to the court or otherwise
finalized''; and
(B) in paragraph (9), by striking ``or deferred
prosecution agreement'' and inserting ``deferred
prosecution agreement, nonprosecution agreement, or the
referral of a criminal investigation to another
Federal, State, or local law enforcement entity. In the
case of a nonprosecution agreement or referral of a
criminal investigation to another law enforcement
entity, upon a showing of good cause, which shall be
based upon public safety and the needs of related
ongoing prosecutions, the victim may be required to
maintain the confidentiality of any nonpublic
information disclosed to the victim. Any such duty of
confidentiality may not be greater than that of the
Government or the defendant. The Attorney General may
assess a civil penalty for any breach of
confidentiality under this section, after notice and an
opportunity for a hearing, of not more than $500 for
each violation.'';
(2) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting after the period at
the end the following: ``If a dispute arises about whether the
officers and employees have made such best efforts, the
Department of Justice shall promptly provide to the victim and,
if requested, to the court reviewing the issue all relevant
information and documents concerning the circumstances,
including steps taken to comply with this subsection.'';
(3) in subsection (d)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``the
Government'' the following: ``with the informed consent
of the victim, the Government (including a Special
Victims' Advocate appearing pursuant to paragraph
(8))'';
(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting after the period
at the end the following: ``The procedure fashioned by
the court under this paragraph shall have no effect on
the duty of officers and employees of the Government to
make their best efforts to accord crime victims the
rights described in subsection (a).'';
(C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``forthwith'' and
inserting ``forthwith, and the Government shall provide
promptly to the Court all information and documents
relevant to the assertion of the right'';
(D) by amending paragraph (5) to read as follows:
``(5) Re-opening proceedings.--
``(A) In no case shall a failure to afford a right
under this chapter provide grounds for a new trial.
``(B) A victim who received reasonable notice of
the relevant proceedings may make a motion to re-open a
plea or sentence only if--
``(i) the victim has asserted the right to
be heard before or during the proceeding at
issue and such right was denied;
``(ii) the victim petitions the court of
appeals for a writ of mandamus within 30 days;
and
``(iii) in the case of a plea, the accused
has not pled to the highest offense charged.
``(C) A victim may bring a motion to re-open a plea
or sentence, not later than 180 days after the relevant
proceeding, upon the basis that the victim was not able
to assert the right to be heard during the proceeding
because the victim did not have reasonable and timely
notice of the proceeding.'';
(E) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph
(10); and
(F) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
``(6) Motion to annul prosecutorial agreements.--A crime
victim may make a motion to rescind a deferred prosecution or
may bring an action in the district court to annul a
nonprosecution agreement based upon a showing by clear and
convincing evidence that the Government violated the rights
provided for crime victims in this section.
``(7) Remedies.--For proceedings under paragraphs (5) and
(6), upon a finding that a victim's rights have been violated,
the court shall impose a just and appropriate remedy to address
such violation. In determining the appropriate remedy, the
court may convene a hearing for victim impact statements, and
consider the testimony at any such hearing.
``(8) Special victims' advocate.--The National Coordinator
may appear in a criminal action as a Special Victims' Advocate
to protect the rights of crime victims in this section.
``(9) Attorneys' fees.--A crime victim who prevails against
the United States in an action to enforce a right under this
section shall be entitled to an award of reasonable attorneys'
fees and expenses, as provided in section 2412 of title 28,
United States Code.'';
(4) in subsection (e)(2)(A), by striking ``the commission
of a'' and inserting ``a suspected, alleged, charged, or
convicted''; and
(5) by striking subsection (f).
SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OFFICIALS RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING
VICTIMS' RIGHTS.
(a) In General.--Chapter 237 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 3772. Office of the National Coordinator for Victims' Rights
``(a) Establishment.--There is established within the Office of the
Deputy Attorney General of the Department of Justice, the Office of the
National Coordinator for Victims' Rights, headed by the National
Coordinator for Victims' Rights (in this section referred to as the
`National Coordinator'), for the purpose of reviewing determinations of
the Ombudsman, monitoring and appearing in court proceedings as Special
Victim's Advocate to protect the rights of victims, and developing
standards for treatment of victims.
``(b) Duties.--The National Coordinator shall have the following
duties:
``(1) Revisions.--Not less than once every 2 years, the
National Coordinator, in consultation with the Ombudsman, the
Director of the Office of Violence Against Women, the Director
of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the litigating
components of the Department of Justice, and victims' rights
and services groups, shall review and, if necessary, recommend
the revision of the rules issued by the Attorney General under
section 3774.
``(2) Advocate.--The National Coordinator may appear before
the court and act as a Special Victims' Advocate, either upon
receiving a request from the Ombudsman pursuant to section
3773(b)(5), upon a request from a prosecutor, or in the
discretion of the National Coordinator based on the
circumstances.
``(3) Training.--The National Coordinator shall coordinate
a mandatory course of training on the treatment of crime
victims for each officer or employee of the Department of
Justice who interacts with crime victims as a part of their
official duties.
``(4) Sanctions.--The National Coordinator may apply
disciplinary sanctions, including suspension or termination
from employment and delay of promotion on the General Schedule
or other relevant pay schedule, for officers and employees of
the Department of Justice who fail to comply with section
3771(a) or section 503 of the Victims' Rights and Restitution
Act of 1990 (34 U.S.C. 20141).
``(5) Minimum requirements.--The National Coordinator shall
develop best practices for protecting the rights of crime
victims, which may exceed the minimum legal requirements set
forth in this chapter and shall be relevant to determining
whether an officer or employee of the Department of Justice has
made best efforts to ensure that crime victims are notified of,
and accorded, the rights described in section 3771(a) or
section 503 of the Victims' Rights and Restitution Act of 1990
(34 U.S.C. 20141).
``(c) Award.--
``(1) In general.--The National Coordinator may, upon a
final determination that an officer or employee of the
Department of Justice intentionally violated the rights of a
victim, award the victim not more than $15,000, to be paid out
of the fund described in section 1304 of title 31.
``(2) Supplemental.--The award payable under this
subsection shall be in addition to any other restitution or
recovery to which the crime victim is entitled as a result of
the crime.
``Sec. 3773. Office of Crime Victims' Rights
``(a) Establishment.--There is established within the Executive
Office for United States Attorneys of the Department of Justice, the
Office of Crime Victims' Rights, headed by the Crime Victims' Rights
Ombudsman (in this section referred to as the `Ombudsman'), for the
purposes of--
``(1) receiving, coordinating investigations of, and
adjudicating complaints relating to a violation of the rights
of a crime victim; and
``(2) serving as a central resource for information and
contact in the Department of Justice for crime victims.
``(b) Duties.--The Ombudsman shall have the following duties:
``(1) Complaint submission system.--The Ombudsman shall
develop a streamlined system for submitting complaints to the
Ombudsman electronically and by mail.
``(2) Points of contact.--The Ombudsman shall appoint a
point of contact for each office of the Department of Justice
and mandate annual training for each point of contact on the
requirements and expectations of Department of Justice officers
and employees with respect to the rights of crime victims.
``(3) Complaint process.--The Ombudsman shall establish, in
coordination with the National Coordinator, a process for the
Ombudsman--
``(A) to directly receive any complaint from crime
victims for violations of their rights under section
3771(a) or section 503 of the Victims' Rights and
Restitution Act of 1990 (34 U.S.C. 20141) by an officer
or employee of the Department of Justice and to refer
the complaint to the point of contact at each relevant
office for investigation, initial findings, and
recommendations;
``(B) in the case that the point of contact has a
conflict of interest, to refer the complaint to another
officer in a relevant office to address the complaint,
who shall be designated as the point of contact with
respect to that complaint;
``(C) to provide the complainant an opportunity to
be heard by the point of contact and respond to initial
findings of the point of the contact;
``(D) to review the findings and recommendations of
the point of contact; and
``(E) to, not later than 90 days after receipt of a
complaint--
``(i) make a final determination based on
the findings and recommendations of the point
of contact on whether there was any violation
of the rights of the crime victim; and
``(ii) in the case that there is a
violation, identify each officer or employee
responsible for the violation, the severity of
the violation, and any relief or disciplinary
sanction to be imposed.
``(4) Report determinations.--The Ombudsman shall report to
the complainant the determinations made under paragraph (3),
after which the complainant shall have an opportunity to appeal
to the National Coordinator, except in a case in which the
complaint concerns the conduct of the National Coordinator, in
which case the appeal shall be to the Attorney General or a
designee of the Attorney General. Whether or not there is an
appeal, the Ombudsman shall refer the determinations to the
National Coordinator for final review and approval and
application of any disciplinary sanctions or award.
``(5) Appoint advocate.--
``(A) Request.--The Ombudsman shall develop a
process by which victims may submit a request for the
National Coordinator to appear before the court and act
as a Special Victims' Advocate.
``(B) Referral.--The Ombudsman shall refer to the
National Coordinator any request received pursuant to
the process developed under subparagraph (A).
``(6) Complaint period.--A victim of a crime may submit a
complaint under this subsection ending on the date that is 1
year after the victim learns of a violation of their rights
under section 3771(a) or section 503 of the Victims' Rights and
Restitution Act of 1990 (34 U.S.C. 20141) by an officer or
employee of the Department of Justice or 2 years after the
actual violation, whichever is later, except that the National
Coordinator may extend such date if the National Coordinator
determines an extension to be necessary to accord the victim of
a crime their rights upon a showing of good cause.
``Sec. 3774. General provisions
``(a) Rule Making.--The Attorney General shall issue such rules as
may be necessary to carry out this chapter.
``(b) Reports to Congress.--
``(1) In general.--The Attorney General shall submit to
Congress a report on--
``(A) significant steps taken to improve the
Department's best efforts to accord crime victims their
rights;
``(B) the number of complaints filed with the
Ombudsman and the outcome of those complaints
(including any disciplinary action); and
``(C) a list of all cases in which a court has
determined that there has been a failure to accord
crime victims their rights and the best efforts made by
officers and employees of the Department of Justice in
each case.
``(2) Annual and biannual reports.--The report described in
paragraph (1) shall be submitted not later than 1 year after
the date of enactment of this section and--
``(A) annually thereafter for a period of 2 years;
and
``(B) biannually after the end of the period
described in subparagraph (A).''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 237 of
title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``3772. Office of the National Coordinator for Victims' Rights.
``3773. Office of Crime Victims' Rights.
``3774. General provisions.''.
(c) Judicial Training on the Rights of Crime Victims.--Not later
than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of
the Federal Judicial Center shall, in consultation with victims' rights
and services groups--
(1) create a guidebook for Federal judges and judicial
employees explaining legal requirements regarding crime
victims' rights and best practices for affording those rights
in judicial proceedings; and
(2) incorporate the concepts from the guidebook in the
Federal Judicial Center's judicial orientation training.
SEC. 4. CRIME VICTIM LEGAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.
Section 1404D of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (34 U.S.C. 20107)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to funds made
available under section 1402(d), there are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $13,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.''.
SEC. 5. NATIONAL RESOURCE CENTER ON CRIME VICTIMS' RIGHTS.
(a) Authority.--The Attorney General, acting through the Ombudsman
of the Office of Crime Victims' Rights, may award a grant to an
eligible nonprofit entity or tribal organization, in order to provide
for the establishment and operation of a national resource center on
crime victims' rights. The resource center shall provide information
and assistance to lawyers and organizations that provide legal
assistance to aid in efforts to advocate for crime victims' rights in
Federal jurisdictions and in States and tribal jurisdictions that have
laws substantially similar to the provisions of section 3771 of title
18, United States Code.
(b) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this
section, an entity or organization shall submit an application to the
Attorney General at such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the Attorney General may require, including information
that demonstrates that the entity or organization has nationally
recognized expertise in the area of crime victims' rights.
(c) Use of Grant Amount.--An entity or organization that receives a
grant under this section may use the funds made available through the
grant for staff salaries, travel expenses, equipment, printing, and
other reasonable expenses necessary to develop, maintain, and
disseminate to lawyers and organizations described in subsection (a),
information and assistance concerning legal representation to assist
victims of a crime.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $1,500,000 for each of fiscal
years 2021 through 2025.
(e) Availability of Grant Funds.--Funds appropriated under this
section shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 6. STREAMLINING VICTIM NOTIFICATION.
Section 3664(d) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``The probation officer''
and inserting ``Subject to paragraph (7), the probation
officer''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) Paragraph (2) shall not apply if an officer or
employee of the Department of Justice or other department or
agency of the United States provides to a victim notice and an
affidavit form under section 3771(c)(1) before the probation
officer submits a presentence report under subsection (a).''.
SEC. 7. IMPROVEMENTS FOR ORDERS OF RESTITUTION.
(a) Changes in Procedures for Orders of Restitution.--Section 3664
of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (d)(2)(A)(v), by striking ``(B)'' and
inserting ``(D)'';
(2) in subsection (f)(2)--
(A) by inserting ``the amount owed, that this
amount is payable immediately, and'' after ``order'';
and
(B) by striking ``, and the schedule according to
which,'';
(3) in subsection (f)(3), by amending subparagraph (B) to
read as follows:
``(B) Notwithstanding any payment schedule entered
by the court, each order of restitution shall be a
civil debt, payable immediately, and subject to the
enforcement procedures provided in this section. No
payment schedule imposed by the court shall preclude
the United States from enforcing an order of
restitution pursuant to this section, nor shall any
payment schedule imposed by the court preclude
collection pursuant to the Bureau of Prisons' Inmate
Financial Responsibility Program.'';
(4) in subsection (k), by striking the last sentence;
(5) in subsection (m), by amending paragraph (1) to read as
follows:
``(1) An order of restitution may be enforced as follows:
``(A) An order may be enforced through civil
practices and procedures before the liability for
restitution is satisfied, remitted, set aside, or
terminated under section 3613.
``(B) An order may be enforced by the United States
in the manner provided for in subchapter C of chapter
227 and subchapter B of chapter 229 of this title.
``(C) An order may be enforced by any victim named
in the restitution order in accordance with section
1962 of title 28. At the request of a victim named in a
restitution order, the clerk of the court shall issue
an abstract of judgment certifying that a judgment has
been entered in favor of such victim in the amount
specified in the restitution order. Upon registering,
recording, docketing, or indexing such abstract in
accordance with the rules and requirements relating to
judgments of the court of the State where the district
court is located, the abstract of judgment shall be a
lien on the property of the defendant located in such
State in the same manner and to the same extent and
under the same conditions as a judgment of a court of
general jurisdiction in that State.''; and
(6) by inserting after subsection (p) the following:
``(q) Upon motion of the Government or petition by the probation
office, the court shall conduct a hearing to determine whether the
defendant has knowingly refused to make a restitution payment. If the
court finds that the defendant is in default, the court may take any
action described in sections 3613A and 3614 of this title, to obtain
compliance with the order of restitution or to sanction the defendant
for knowing refusal to pay.''.
(b) Expansion of Civil Remedies for Orders of Restitution.--Section
3613 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in the section heading, by inserting ``or restitution''
after ``fine'';
(2) in subsection (a), by inserting ``or restitution''
after ``fine'' each place it appears;
(3) in subsection (b)--
(A) by inserting ``or restitution'' after ``fine'';
and
(B) by inserting ``or ordered to pay restitution''
after ``fined'' each place it appears; and
(4) in subsection (e), by inserting ``or restitution''
after ``fine''.
<all>
Courtney Wild Crime Victims' Rights Reform Act of 2019
#4729 | HR Congress #116
Policy Area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Civil actions and liabilityCongressional oversightCrime victimsCriminal investigation, prosecution, interrogationCriminal justice information and recordsCriminal procedure and sentencingDue process and equal protectionEmployment and training programsGovernment information and archivesJudicial review and appealsLawyers and legal servicesLegal fees and court costs
Last Action: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. (11/15/2019)
Bill Text Source: Congress.gov
Summary and Impacts
Original Text