Dianne Feinstein: “Yes. I would now like to address the enforcement provisions of the bill, specifically section 2, subsection (d)(1). This…”

“Yes. I would now like to address the enforcement provisions of the bill, specifically section 2, subsection (d)(1). This provision allows a crime victim to enter the criminal trial court during proceedings involving the crime against the victim and assert the rights provided by this bill. This provision ensures that crime victims have standing to be heard in trial courts so that they are heard at the very moment when their rights are at stake and this, in turn, forces the criminal justice system to be responsive to a victim's rights in a timely way. Importantly, however, the bill does not allow the defendant in the case to assert any of the victim's rights to obtain relief. This prohibition prevents the individual accused of the crime from distorting a right intended for the benefit of the individual victim into a weapon against justice. The provision allows the crime victim's representative and the attorney for the Government to go into a criminal trial court and assert the crime victim's rights.”