HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014070.jpg
1.49 MB
Extraction Summary
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People
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Organizations
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Locations
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Events
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Relationships
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Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Legal academic article / law review page (house oversight document)
File Size:
1.49 MB
Summary
This document appears to be page 91 of a law review article or legal brief from 2014, included in a House Oversight Committee production (Bates stamp HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014070). It analyzes the Crime Victims' Rights Act (CVRA), specifically discussing the 'logical limits' of when victims' rights attach during the investigative phase before formal charges are filed. It cites *United States v. Rubin* (E.D.N.Y. 2008) to argue that rights cannot attach to uncharged crimes the government has not yet contemplated or verified.
People (1)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Rubin | Defendant (Case Citation) |
Cited in United States v. Rubin regarding CVRA application.
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Organizations (3)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York |
Court that framed the issue of when CVRA rights attach in a securities fraud case.
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| Justice Department |
Mentioned regarding interactions with criminals and victims during investigations.
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| House Oversight Committee |
Implied by the Bates stamp 'HOUSE_OVERSIGHT'.
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Locations (1)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Location of the court case cited.
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Relationships (1)
Text discusses the obligation of the government to notify victims and when those rights attach.
Key Quotes (4)
"Does the CVRA apply one second after a federal crime has been committed? Or does it apply at some later point during an investigation?"Source
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Quote #1
"“[q]uite understandably, movants perceive their victimization as having begun long before the government got around to filing the superseding indictment.”"Source
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Quote #2
"It is impossible to expect the government, much less a court, to notify crime victims of their rights if the government has not verified to at least an elementary degree that a crime has actually taken place"Source
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Quote #3
"Crime victims’ rights advocates are fond of saying that victims “only want to be treated like criminals”"Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014070.jpg
Quote #4
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (2,573 characters)
2014] CRIME VICTIMS’ RIGHTS 91
it has extended many rights to victims before the formal filing of criminal charges as a matter of internal policy.182 This approach appears to be workable, as a number of states extend rights to victims during the investigative process.183
A. A TEST FOR DETERMINING WHEN RIGHTS ATTACH
As explained in the earlier Parts of this Article, the CVRA clearly envisions that crime victims would have rights in the criminal justice process before the return of indictments or the filing of criminal complaints. The question then as to how much earlier in the process crime victims have rights naturally arises. Does the CVRA apply one second after a federal crime has been committed? Or does it apply at some later point during an investigation?
This issue was nicely framed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in a securities fraud case. In the first indictment underlying the case, the charged crime did not include various victims. A later superseding indictment broadened the charges to include those missing individuals. When they brought a suit under the CVRA, the court noted that “[q]uite understandably, movants perceive their victimization as having begun long before the government got around to filing the superseding indictment.”184 The court, however, explained that there must be “logical limits” to crime victims’ rights before the filing of charges.185 The court noted:
For example, the realm of cases in which the CVRA might apply despite no prosecution being ‘underway,’ cannot be read to include the victims of uncharged crimes that the government has not even contemplated. It is impossible to expect the government, much less a court, to notify crime victims of their rights if the government has not verified to at least an elementary degree that a crime has actually taken place, given that a corresponding investigation is at a nascent or theoretical stage.186
The logical limits that the CVRA envisions could come from how the Justice Department interacts with criminals during the investigation of a crime. Crime victims’ rights advocates are fond of saying that victims “only want to be treated like criminals”—that is, they simply want to have the same kinds of rights as criminals receive, such as the right to be notified
182 See, e.g., ATTORNEY GENERAL GUIDELINES, supra note 52, at 41–42 (discussing the right to confer regarding plea bargains).
183 See infra Part III.D.
184 United States v. Rubin, 558 F. Supp. 2d 411, 419 (E.D.N.Y. 2008).
185 Id.
186 Id.
183 See infra Part III.D.
184 United States v. Rubin, 558 F. Supp. 2d 411, 419 (E.D.N.Y. 2008).
185 Id.
186 Id.
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014070
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