Why Victim’s Rights are being left out of the Equation
Recently, Nina Salarno Besselman, President of Crime Victims United, addressed the California Department of Insurance regarding bail reform. She is a respected crime victims advocate and former Deputy District Attorney. Her organization, Crime Victims United is based in California giving a voice to victims who are often overlooked by the criminal justice system. The organization provides assistance and support to crime victims. Ms. Salarno discusses an unfortunate cost of bail reform that is often not even discussed, the cost to victims. As Ms. Salarno points out, victims also have a right to due process and to a speedy trial. Victims have a right to attend bail hearings and to be heard. If bail is eliminated, then that right to be heard is eliminated as well. Marsy’s Law codifies Victim’s Rights in California allowing them to attend bail hearings and securing their rights. The risk assessments done on defendants in pretrial release or OR release programs do not take into consideration the victim or the defendant’s true criminal history only their convictions.
Furthermore, Ms. Salarno argues that bail is instrumental in bringing people to justice. In Sacramento alone, there are over 54,000 warrants issue for failures to appear and the vast majority of those are people who have been released on their own recognizance or those on pretrial release. Eliminating bail puts the safety of the victim and the public at risk which must be considered in any cost analysis. Ms. Salarno rightly asserts that victims deserve their day in court and deserve to be heard. When defendants fail to appear victims lose their day in court and their rights are put beneath that of everyone else.
In her final remarks, Ms. Salarno urges the commissioner to be completely transparent and complete a statewide study as to the the actual amount of people in jail that cannot afford bail. Ms. Salarno and other bail proponents believe that the number is relatively small given the fact that the 62% argued by bail reformers includes those being held for other reasons including ICE holds, probation or parole issues and those that are completing their sentence under Prop 47 and Prop 51.