Background:

Most people are aware that the Illinois Constitution spells out the rights of victims of crime.  But did you know that in the statutory protections as those rights are explained in Illinois Law, it states the rights of victims and then includes this wording:

Section 4

(b) A statement and explanation of the rights of crime victims set forth in paragraph (a) of this Section shall be given to a crime victim at the initial contact with the criminal justice system by the appropriate authorities and shall be conspicuously posted in all court facilities.

How many times have you seen a poster in a courthouse fulfilling this requirement?  We have seen none.  Yet, we have seen many posters explaining the rights of defendants placed as a public service.

When we investigated this violation of victims rights some time ago, we were told that many judges and defense attorneys objected to posting victim rights in the courthouses.  In one case, the courthouse authorities were willing to entertain a compromise whereby a poster would be placed only in the victim waiting rooms.  While we appreciate this nominal move in our direction, we do not believe that this is in compliance with the spirit of the law.

We are not impressed by the attitude represented here.  If the judges and defense attorneys in question have a problem with this statute, then they should petition the legislature to change the law, rather than violating it themselves.  Of course, it is unlikely that they will be able to get legislators to vote against victims on the record.  That's particularly bad for re-election prospects.

It is our opinion that the defendant's rights do belong in the courtroom, right alongside the victims' rights.  This fair and equal treatment would send an important message to the public and increase the awareness of our rights as victims of crime.

We are grateful in the fall of 2007 that several candidates for Cook County States Attorney, including Larry Suffredin and Bob Milan have promised to make an issue of this in their race for office and if they win the office.

Please see our page on Victim and Witness Rights with commentary.

What You Can Do

Whenever you enter a courthouse, any courthouse in the State of Illinois, be aware of this requirement.  If you do not see that the courthouse is in compliance with the law consider doing the following:

If you are the victim in an active case, bring the lack of compliance to the attention of your victim advocate and prosecutor and ask for their help in resolving this abuse of victim rights.

If you are not the victim in an active case, write to the presiding judge in your jurisdiction requesting that the courthouse, and all courthouses in Illinois be brought into compliance.

And write to the Attorney General of Illinois state or regional offices to request that all courthouses be brought into compliance with the law in this regard.

Feel free to use the suggested language here.

If they hear from enough of us, they will not be able to ignore us.  Remember, victims are often the only ones who can protect our rights.

Please let us know how you have responded to this request and any success stories you may have.